Memorial Head of Queen Mother
date: label: Accession Date
content: 28 Aug 1992
label: Collection Date
content: 1959
name: label: Donor Name
content: Hirshhorn Museum & Sculpture Garden
notes: label: Notes
content: Provenience undocumented (Benin City, Nigeria, 16th c-17th c.; Aaron Furman Gallery of NY, to 6/5/59; Joseph Hirshhorn purchase 6/5/59 to 5/17/66). Identification provided by Hirshhorn Museum (HMSG). Gift of Joseph Hirshhorn Foundation. Vetted by William Fagg & Philip Dark for HMSG. Fagg dated this to the early 16th c.; Dark dated it to 17th c, perhaps earlier. Dark commented that these heads were made by brass casters for their ancestor shrines in the brassworker's quarter. Exhibited in HMSG's "Benin Art," Dec 1978 - (?) 1980. Description: Hollow, cast brass head with flared, circular base and cylindrical, ridged neck. Large, almond-shaped eyes with raised pupils, sharply indented wide nose, full, parted lips, small, sculpted ears. Across forehead are 6 raised oval scarification marks. Wears round headgear w/the front part rising higher, ending in a beak-like point. Behind this is round hole. Head-gear has raised, diamond-shaped pattern. Rim & base of front part are decorated with floral and cylindrical attachments. Hanging from rim are braided & beaded hair. Base's flared edge is trimmed with braids & surface covered with raised scroll pattern. Label "sf66.41." Condition: some losses around flared edge of base. Large hole in back of head.
label: Notes
content: SI Archives acc. 86-136, box 2
label: Record Last Modified
content: 28 Aug 2023
label: Specimen Count
content: 1
place: label: Place
content: Benin City, Edo State / Kingdom of Benin, Nigeria, Africa
topic: label: Topic
content: Ethnology
culture: label: Culture
content: Edo
setName: label: See more items in
content: Anthropology
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: NMNH - Anthropology Dept.
identifier: label: Accession Number
content: 370312
label: USNM Number
content: E428172-0
objectType: label: Object Type
content: Sculpture
physicalDescription: label: Height - Object
content: 47 cm
label: Diameter - Object
content: 25.5 cm