GENERAL DESCRIPTION
The Baule are essentially an egalitarian people who live in independent villages and vest authority in "notables." These dignitaries lead a cluster of villages and are distinguished by gold regalia, including crowns, jewelry, handheld objects, flywhisks, and footwear. The regalia may be made of pure gold or wood covered with gold leaf.
Made of imported velvet, Baule crowns take the form of a pillbox or narrow headband and are decorated with figurative or geometric gold-leafed wooded plaques that have meaning. The rectangular plaques on this crown represent a bamboo door (srala) that is hung at the entrance to a bedroom in traditional village houses. As a screen "sees" both inside and outside the bedroom, a notable must know all that is happening within his village and beyond. This pillbox crown is topped with an elephant, a metaphor for political leadership.
Adapted from
- Roslyn A. Walker, Label text, Arts of Africa, 2015.
- Roslyn A. Walker, The Arts of Africa at the Dallas Museum of Art (New Haven and London" Yale University Press, 2009): 68-69.
NOTES
Exhibition - African Headwear: Beyond Fashion
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PROVENANCE
Around 1950-2006: Private collection, Switzerland [1]
2007: Dallas Museum of Art, purchased from Aspects of Africa (Charles D. Miller, III), St. James, New York
The main source for this provenance is the copy of the invoice dated January 4, 2007, in the Collections Records object file (2007.34.3).
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188988217: UMO
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Apply to objects where number equals 2007.34.3
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General Description
The Baule are essentially an egalitarian people who live in independent villages and vest authority in "notables." These dignitaries lead a cluster of villages and are distinguished by gold regalia, including crowns, jewelry, handheld objects, flywhisks, and footwear. The regalia may be made of pure gold or wood covered with gold leaf.
Made of imported velvet, Baule crowns take the form of a pillbox or narrow headband and are decorated with figurative or geometric gold-leafed wooded plaques that have meaning. The rectangular plaques on this crown represent a bamboo door (srala) that is hung at the entrance to a bedroom in traditional village houses. As a screen "sees" both inside and outside the bedroom, a notable must know all that is happening within his village and beyond. This pillbox crown is topped with an elephant, a metaphor for political leadership.
Adapted from
- Roslyn A. Walker, Label text, Arts of Africa, 2015.
- Roslyn A. Walker, The Arts of Africa at the Dallas Museum of Art (New Haven and London" Yale University Press, 2009): 68-69.
Fun Facts
Archival Resources
Web Resources
Notes
Exhibition - African Headwear: Beyond Fashion
Catalogue essays
Artist/designers
Cultures
Geography
Process/materials
Historical periods
Individuals
Subject terms
RELATED OBJECTS
PROVENANCE
Around 1950-2006: Private collection, Switzerland [1]
2007: Dallas Museum of Art, purchased from Aspects of Africa (Charles D. Miller, III), St. James, New York
The main source for this provenance is the copy of the invoice dated January 4, 2007, in the Collections Records object file (2007.34.3).
AUDIO ASSETS
VIDEO ASSETS
rules
Apply To
Objects
number
Equals
2007.34.3
source file
object_notes_2_c-0233.xml.nores