Lidded Pot (1900s): Art, History and Details

Lidded Pot (1900s) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection.

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

This large, beautifully shaped vessel was used for the serving of beer, an essential component of Zulu hospitality. Undecorated vessels were for private household use, and ornamented examples were reserved for guests. Zulu pottery is produced by women, and is typically thin-walled, with a burnished black surface. Decoration may be incised around the shoulder, as in this example, or may consist of raised bumps that resemble body scarification. The basketry lid protects the vessel's contents from flies or debris; contemporary pot lids are often woven of telephone wire with a colorful plastic coating

Object facts

• Title: Lidded Pot
• Date: 1900s
• Culture: Southern Africa, South Africa, Zulu, mid-20th century
• Type: Vessels
• Technique: Terracotta and plant fiber
• Dimensions: Diameter: 45.7 cm (18 in.); Overall: 33 cm (13 in.)
• Collection: African Art
• Department: African Art
• Accession number: 1999.13

Collection credit

John L. Severance Fund

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.