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AFRICAN

Collection Info
AFRICAN

The Nasher Museum's African holdings number around 300 objects, with strengths in works from Nigeria, particularly from the Yoruba peoples and a group of 172 rare masks and objects from Liberia donated to Duke in 1974 by Dr. George Harley, a Duke-trained physician, missionary and anthropologist, who was one of the first persons to collect masks and objects of the Mano and to bring them out of Africa beginning in the 1920's. His influential articles published in the Papers of the Peabody Museum, Harvard University, "Notes on the Poro in Liberia" (1941) and "Masks as Agents of Social Control in Northeast Liberia" (1950) remain standard references. The Duke University Special Collections Library is the repository of Harley's archival papers, dating from 1925-1960, which document his experiences in Africa.

The Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University owns more than 10,000 works of art. As part of its mission, the Nasher Museum created this online database to make its collections accessible to a wide audience. This is an ongoing project, so please check back periodically to browse new entries. Some data may change as a result of ongoing research.

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Gelede Trunk Mask, Male Figure
Yoruba peoples
20th century
Pigment and encrustation on wood
1978.46.1
Seated female figure (blolo bla)
Baule peoples
19th century–20th century
Pigment on wood
1985.15.19
Door from a chief's house
Areogun of Osi-Ilorin
c. 1920
Pigment on wood
2002.11.1
Replica of a Kpelie Mask
Senufo peoples
n.d.
Wood
L.2.1974.150
Poro Society Mask with Skull Cap
Unidentified Culture
n.d.
Wood, pigments
1986.6.13
Human Torso Fetish Figure
Yaka peoples (Democratic Republic of Congo)
Wood, fiber, cloth
1983.42.10
Mask
Mano peoples
n.d.
Wood, metal, hair, encrustation
L.2.1974.3
Miniature Mask
Dan peoples
n.d.
Brass
L.2.1974.81
Shrine Ancestor Figure
Igbo peoples
20th century
Wood
1985.14.4
Mask (gelede)
Yoruba peoples
20th century
Paint on wood
1976.20.10
Wambele Society Helmet Mask
Senufo peoples
Pigment on wood
1973.45.2
Standing Male Figure in Military Uniform
Kamba
Wood, pigment
1973.49.7
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