Bowl
| Culture | Boiken |
|---|---|
| Title | Bowl (Khomongu) |
| Date | 20th century |
| Medium | Clay and pigment |
| Dimensions | Object: 6 × 12 1/16 in. (15.2 × 30.6 cm) Overall: 6 x 12 1/16 in. (15.2 x 30.6 cm) |
| Credit Line | Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University |
| Accession Number | 63.81 |
| This artwork is currently on view. | |
Abstracted figures and shapes are inscribed on the outside surface of the bowl and colored with red, yellow, and white pigment.
As a result of their elaborate decoration it is easy to assume that bowls, such as this, may have a ritual function, but they were instead daily use objects for food and were produced in large numbers as trade goods for neighboring communities.
Used for the serving of the starchy food staple of sago, such bowls are typically created with complex decorations and imagery. This imagery may include supernatural subjects, geometric motifs derived from animal and plant forms, and well as figures representing spirit forces.
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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Cite this page
"Bowl | Collections Online." Collections Online. Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University, 2025. https://artmuseum.indiana.edu/collections-online/browse/object.php?number=63.81