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Female Head and Torso

A female figure depicted from the torso, just under the belly button, up. The figure's hands hold her breasts.

A female figure depicted from the torso, just under the belly button, up. The figure's hands hold her breasts.

Culture Hemba
Title Female Head and Torso
Date 19th–20th century
Medium Wood and pigment
Dimensions Object: 6 × 2 7/8 × 2 1/2 in. (15.2 × 7.3 × 6.4 cm)
Overall: 6 × 2 7/8 × 2 1/2 in. (15.2 × 7.3 × 6.4 cm)
Credit Line Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University
Accession Number 71.12

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About this Work

Likely intended to be affixed to the top of a gourd containing spiritually charged materials, this figure may have been associated with Buhabo (also known as Bugabo), a secret men's society concerned with divining the causes of illnesses and curing them and with promoting the welfare of its members.


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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"Female Head and Torso | Collections Online." Collections Online. Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University, 2025. https://artmuseum.indiana.edu/collections-online/browse/object.php?number=71.12