Friction Oracle (Itombwa) / Artist Unknown, African, Congo (Zaire), Kuba
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About this Item
Record Details
- Accession Number
- 1997/1.358
- Title
- Friction Oracle (Itombwa)
- Artist Nationality
- Congolese (Zairean)
- Medium and Support
- carved wood, metal, glass beads and cowrie shell
- Object Creation Date
- 20th century
- Object Creation Place
- Africa (continent)
- Congo, Democratic Republic of the (nation)
- Creation Place 1
- Africa (continent)
- Creation Place 2
- Congo, Democratic Republic of the (nation)
- Credit Line
- Gift of Dr. James and Vivian Curtis
- Dimensions
- 7.5 cm x 35 cm x 6.4 cm (2 15/16 in. x 13 3/4 in. x 2 1/2 in.)
- Century
- 20th century
- Primary Object Classification
- Sculpture
- Physical Description
- Carved wood figure of a quadraped, probably a dog. The figure's back is concave and smooth from use. The figure's back was rubbed with a stick, dowel, or cloth to create friction. A small bell or gong hangs from the figure's neck. Details of the face (nose, mouth eyes) are carved in.
- Subject Matter
- Itombwa are tools used by Kuba ritual specialists to locate the source of problems in the community. By rubbing the figure's back, the diviner learns the answers to questions and can then help develop a solution to the petitioner's specific problem. The itombwa is a cosmogram, a model of the universe. By manipulating the model, the diviner can learn the ultimate causes of different experiences in the world, even when those causes are normally invisible.
- Secondary Keywords
- descriptors
- object genres
- object genres by function
- people and occupations
- religious figures
- the natural world
- Rights
- If you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit https://umma.umich.edu/about/services/request-image/ for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form.
Technical Details
- Collection
- University of Michigan Museum of Art
- Image Size
- 3888 x 2592
- File Size
- 1 MB
- Record
- 1997/1.358
- Link to this Item
-
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-1997-sl-1.358/1997_1_358a.jpg
Rights and Permissions
Related Links
IIIF
- Manifest
-
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/i/image/api/manifest/musart:1997-SL-1.358:1997_1_358A.JPG
Cite this Item
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- Full citation
-
"Friction Oracle (Itombwa); Artist Unknown, African, Congo (Zaire), Kuba." In the digital collection University of Michigan Museum of Art. https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-1997-sl-1.358/1997_1_358a.jpg. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed April 16, 2024.
