DOI
https://doi.org/10.25772/5KCN-0136
Defense Date
2014
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts
Department
Art History
First Advisor
Babatunde Lawal
Abstract
In 2010, the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts accessioned a ritual gourd from Mambila peoples of Nigeria and Cameroon into their collection. Although ritual containers with similar configurations abound in different parts of the Cameroon Grasslands in Central Africa, the VMFA gourd presents particular difficulties due to the nature of its accumulation and the lack of scholarship on the Mambila peoples. Therefore, in this thesis, all the aspects of its accumulation have been considered in relation to the culture and belief system of the Mambila and their neighbors. Special attention has been paid to the interconnectedness of form, function, and meaning throughout the thesis in order to shed some light on the social, cosmic, and ritual significance of the gourd and its attachments.
Rights
© The Author
Is Part Of
VCU University Archives
Is Part Of
VCU Theses and Dissertations
Date of Submission
May 2014