Head Rest

CultureLuba

Datelate 19th-early 20th century

MediumWood, glass beads, brass tacks and pigment

DimensionsOverall: 5 3/8 × 4 3/8 × 3 1/4 inches (13.65 × 11.11 × 8.26 cm)

Credit LineGift of Adele and Donald Hall

Object number2025.33.4

On View

Not on view

Terms

DescriptionThis headrest features a kneeling female figure with buttocks lowered to the ground. The hands are on the navel, fingers splayed, and the elbows jut to the sides. The head, atop a long and thick neck, presents a serene face with closed eyes and gently pursed lips. Two large cascades form a hairstyle that recedes from the forehead. Brass tacks embellish the base and the edges of the rest. Stands of red, white, and black beads decorate the figure's waist, neck, and the crown of the head.Exhibition History

Exhibition History

Magnificent Gifts for the 75th, Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, February 13-April 4, 2010.

Provenance

Acquired by a Scheut missionary, Congo, between 1888 and the early 1920s [1];

His gift to the grandmother of Joséphine Ceriez, early 1920s; By descent to Joséphine Ceriez, until 2006;

Purchased from sale, Collection de Georges Thomann, Karel Timmermans et Divers Amateurs, Sotheby's, Paris, December 5, 2006, lot 208, through Marc Leo Felix, by Adele (1932-2013) and Donald (1928-2024) Hall, Kansas City, MO, 2006-2024;

Their gift, through the Donald J. Hall Revocable Trust to The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, 2025 [2].

NOTES:

[1] The first Scheut missionaries were dispatched to Congo in 1888.

[2] Prior to being formally accessioned into the collection, the object was a promised gift made by the Hall family in 2009 in honor of the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art's 75th anniversary.

Published References

Sotheby's, Collection de George Thomann, Karel Timmermans et Divers Amateurs (Paris: Sotheby's, December 5, 2006),188-191, lot 208, (repro.)

Sotheby's, Collection Brian et Diane Leyden: Art Bété et Sénufo (Paris: Sotheby's, December 5, 2007), 125, (repro.).

David A. Binkley, A Private Passion: The Donald and Adele Hall Collection of African Art (Seattle: Marquand Books, 2015), 212-213, (repro.).

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