Rhythm Pounder (Deble)
42 1/2 in. (108 cm)
Unknown, Senufo
Ivoirian
Object Type:
Sculpture
Medium and Support:
Wood
Credit Line:
Marion Stratton Gould Fund
Accession Number:
1969.72
Location: Currently on view
In many African societies, life on earth is seen as part of a continuum that permits movement between the spirit and earthly worlds. As ancestors are in a position to assist the living, they must be respected and attended to. The rhythm pounders of the Senufo originally functioned as communication devices in calling the spirits of ancestors to participate in funerals. Held by the upper arms, the rhythm pounder’s thick base is thumped into the earth in rhythm with the sounds of chants, drums and rattles.
[Gallery label text, 2009]
Provenance
Afrantique Arts, Wyckoff, NJ; purchased from them by the Gallery in 1969
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Exhibition List
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Bibliography
This object has the following bibliographic references:
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Article Scope: Reproduction only.
Susan Dodge Peters, ed.
Memorial Art Gallery: An Introduction to the Collection.
New York, New York: Memorial Art Gallery in association with Hudson Hills Press, 1988.
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