Shrine Vessel

YorubaWW-1949-136848

1949·Terracotta·27.5 × 28 × 28 cm (10 7/8 × 11 1/16 × 11 1/16 in.)

<p>Made from terracotta-colored clay with flecks of quartz, this round vessel was hand built by a female potter in southwestern Nigeria around 1950. The applied decoration encircling the center portion of the jar consists of raised horizontal bands cut with an incised vertical chevron pattern. The bottom border of the decorative middle has an edge that repeats this chevron shape and contributes to the delicate quality of the design. The incised chevrons are broken up by rows of small circles made with a circular punch. The base of the vessel has impressed marks created either with a coiled rope or a basket that was used to support the rounded bottom during the building process. This pot would have been used for everyday domestic cooking and serving.</p>

Catalogue

Year: 1949
Medium: Terracotta
Dimensions: 27.5 × 28 × 28 cm (10 7/8 × 11 1/16 × 11 1/16 in.)
Collection: Art Institute of Chicago
Artist: Yoruba

Artist

Yoruba

Textile

Yoruba is an Atlantic–Congo language that is spoken in West Africa, primarily in South West Nigeria, Benin, and parts of Togo. It is spoken by the Yoruba people. Yoruba speakers number roughly 50 million, including around 2 million second-language or L2 speakers. As a pluricentric language, it is primarily spoken in a dialectal area spanning Nigeria, Benin, and Togo with smaller migrated communities in Ivory Coast, Sierra Leone and Gambia.

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