Object Name: Container

Culture: Mangbetu/Zande peoples

Place of Origin: Democratic Republic of the Congo

Date/Era: Late 19th-early 20th century

Medium/Materials: Wood, bark, plant fiber, string

Credit Line: Fowler Museum at UCLA. Gift of the Wellcome Trust.

Accession Number:X65.5471a,b

Mangbetu and related peoples created bark boxes for storing personal possessions. Some boxes were particularly prized for their workmanship and were accordingly considered prestige items. This box demonstrates the masterful fusion of form and function that is characteristic of much African art.

Source: Gallery Wall Text, Intersections: World Arts, Local Lives. (written in 2005)