Artifact of the Month

This reliquary comes from the Bassa peoples in Liberia. For the Bassa, death marks the transition from being a member of society to existing as an ancestor. Click the link to learn more.

This mid-to late 20th century shadow puppet is currently on display in our Musical Narratives of the Southwest Pacific Rim exhibit. These puppets often represent characters in Hindu epics. Click the link to learn more.

This painting is in the Northern Song style, which, rather than depicting the subjects in three-dimensional detail, aims to show how the objects in the painting and in real life are alike in spirit. Click the link to learn more.

This Yoruba mask was used as part of the Gelede masquerade celebrating female ancestors and elderly women. For the Yoruba, mask performances, are a way of recognizing female status. Click the link to learn more.

This Christmas card comes from the collection of Marion Dudley, who was a missionary with the YWCA. She lived and worked in China from the mid-1920s until World War II. Click the link to learn more.

This toy car was made by a boy of about 10 years old in Ouassou, Côte d’Ivoire, in the late 1990s. Cars like this one are made by youths in many parts of Africa using whatever materials are available. Click the link to learn more.