Figure

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Culture Turkana

Title Figure (Ekoku)

Date 20th century

Medium Duom palm nut, fiber, cloth, and and beads

Dimensions Object: 6 1/4 × 5 1/8 × 2 7/8 in. (15.9 × 13 × 7.3 cm)
Overall (includes string): 6 1/4 × 5 1/8 × 6 5/16 in. (15.9 × 13 × 16 cm)

Credit Line Museum purchase with funds from the Raymond and Laura Wielgus fund and with generous support from the Office of the Provost and Executive Vice President, Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University

Accession Number 2014.128

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About this Work

Sometimes referred to as a “doll” this object was not a plaything. Instead, this abstracted figure was made to help ensure a woman would become pregnant and give birth to a healthy child. The figure would be worn/kept near from the time a woman became of marriageable age or was recently married until a healthy child was born.

Provenance
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Provenance research is ongoing for this and many other items in the Eskenazi Museum of Art permanent collection. For more information about the provenance of this artwork, please contact the department curator with specific questions.

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"Figure | Collections Online." Collections Online. Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University, 2025. https://artmuseum.indiana.edu/collections-online/browse/object.php?number=2014.128