Hip Mask Pendant
date: label: Accession Date
content: 28 Aug 1992
label: Collection Date
content: 1957
name: label: Donor Name
content: Hirshhorn Museum & Sculpture Garden
notes: label: Notes
content: Provenience undocumented (Benin City, Nigeria; in England by late 19th c; Plaza Art Galleries of NY, to 4/25/57; Joseph Hirshhorn purchase 4/25/57-5/17/66). Plaza Art Galleries auction brochure described piece as "cire perdue (lost wax) royal portrait sculpture; found in the old palace ruins. Brought to England before the Nigerian government's ban on export of bronze antiquities." Vetted by William Fagg and Philip Dark. Exhibited in Hirshhorn Museum's "Benin Art," Dec 1978 - (?) 1980. Description: oval, hollow mask has stylized facial features with round bulging eyes, wide nose, full lips, & small ears placed close to the eyes. Forehead has 6 scarification marks across. Chin has fan-shaped plug with raised concentric semi-circular design. Has close-fitting cap with diamond-shaped design. Around edge of mask is border of loops with 2 bigger ones, one at top center & other at bottom center.
label: Notes
content: SI Archives acc. 86-136, box 1
label: Record Last Modified
content: 28 Nov 2021
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: E428165-0
objectType: label: Object Type
content: Mask
physicalDescription: label: Length - Object
content: 15 cm
label: Width - Object
content: 10 cm
label: Height - Object
content: 3.5 cm