Funerary Head (Mma)
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Object Label
This head was originally attached to the cylindrical body of a figure called a Mma. The figure represents a royal ancestor and is shown with the composed facial expression expected of Akan or Anyi nobles. The figures are stylized portraits of individuals with differences such as personal hairstyles and scarification patterns. On the outskirts of towns, groups of Mma figures were arranged in cemeteries, where they received offerings and invocations for the dead.
Caption
Anyi. Funerary Head (Mma), 18th–19th century. Terracotta, 6 1/8 in. (15.5 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Dr. and Mrs. Abbott A. Lippman, 69.56. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 69.56_bw.jpg)
Gallery
Not on view
Collection
Gallery
Not on view
Collection
Culture
Title
Funerary Head (Mma)
Date
18th–19th century
Geography
Place made: Sud-Comoé Region, Côte d'Ivoire
Medium
Terracotta
Classification
Dimensions
6 1/8 in. (15.5 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of Dr. and Mrs. Abbott A. Lippman
Accession Number
69.56
Rights
Creative Commons-BY
You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this three-dimensional work in accordance with a Creative Commons license. Fair use, as understood under the United States Copyright Act, may also apply. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply). For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.
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