Lidded Box

Mangbetu and Zande sculptors created a range of utilitarian objects decorated with elements of human anatomy. This lidded box features the head of a woman with a typical halo-shaped hairstyle atop a base shaped like the kind of stool used by women. The body was constructed by wrapping layers of bark into a cylinder. Members of the Mangbetu and Zande nobility used boxes like this one to store valuables such as jewelry and protective charms.