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Requires Photography
Rattle
African
20th century
Medium/Technique
Wood, gourds
Dimensions
Overall: 31 x 6 x 6 cm (12 3/16 x 2 3/8 x 2 3/8 in.)
Credit Line
Gift of Geneviève McMillan in memory of Reba Stewart
Accession Number2009.2652
NOT ON VIEW
CollectionsContemporary Art, Africa and Oceania, Musical Instruments
ClassificationsMusical instruments
This rattle, possibly of Luba origin, is comprised of two hollow gourds into which dried seeds would have been placed to create a rattling sound. The Luba, as well as neighboring communities, used rattles for a variety of ritual purposes. They could be used be diviners during healing ceremonies and have also been associated with the Bagabo secret Society as well as ritual ancestral worship.
ProvenanceGeneviève McMillan (b. 1922 - d. 2008), Cambridge, MA; 2008, to the Geneviève McMillan and Reba Stewart Foundation, Cambridge; 2009, gift of the Geneviève McMillan and Reba Stewart Foundation to the MFA. (Accession Date: June 17, 2009)