Water Transport Jar
Unknown Artist
1900s
Medium
Terracotta
Dimensions
h. 36.9 cm · diam. 35.7 cm
Classification
Vessels
Department
African Art
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
John L. Severance Fund
Accession Number
1995.210
About this artwork
The Nupe, an Islamic people from northern Nigeria, embellish pottery and metalwork with intricate, nonrepresentational patterning. A female potter built this vessel by joining two bowls into a globe shape, then adding the neck. After drying, she used shells to press in designs before burnishing the exterior to a high shine. Finally, she fired the gourd-shaped vessel in a furnace. The patterns beautify and allow a firm grip when lifting the vessel. As the Gwari and Nupe people are neighbors, pott...