id: 157555 accession number: 1994.87 share license status: CC0 url: https://clevelandart.org/art/1994.87 updated: 2023-08-23 23:22:53.411000 Royal Belt (yet), possibly early 1900s. Africa, Central Africa, Democratic Republic of Congo, Kuba Kingdom, Kuba-style maker. Plant fiber, rawhide or leather, glass beads, seashells, cowrie shells, cloth, and colorant; overall: 139.5 cm (54 15/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, John L. Severance Fund 1994.87 title: Royal Belt (yet) title in original language: series: series in original language: creation date: possibly early 1900s creation date earliest: 1900 creation date latest: 1925 current location: creditline: John L. Severance Fund copyright: --- culture: Africa, Central Africa, Democratic Republic of Congo, Kuba Kingdom, Kuba-style maker technique: Plant fiber, rawhide or leather, glass beads, seashells, cowrie shells, cloth, and colorant department: African Art collection: African Art type: Garment find spot: catalogue raisonne: --- CREATORS --- measurements: Overall: 139.5 cm (54 15/16 in.) state of the work: edition of the work: support materials: inscriptions: --- CURRENT EXHIBITIONS title: Object in Focus: African Beaded Belt opening date: 1998-04-30T00:00:00 Object in Focus: African Beaded Belt. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (April 30-June 7, 1998). title: Second Careers: Two Tributaries in African Art opening date: 2020-11-01T04:00:00 Second Careers: Two Tributaries in African Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 1, 2020-March 14, 2021). --- LEGACY EXHIBITIONS * Main Gallery Rotation (gallery 108): May 11, 2010 - October 20, 2014. --- PROVENANCE Jacques Hautelet, La Jolla, CA, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art date: 1994 footnotes: citations: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH date: 1994- footnotes: citations: --- fun fact: Cowry shells, a type of currency used in the Kuba Kingdom in Central Africa, decorate this belt made for a king. The intricate patterns and colors of the beads indicate the high status of the wearer as well as the wealth of his kingdom. digital description: Attributed to Kuba peoples of southeast Democratic Republic of Congo, this prestige belt boasts superb craftsmanship. The accumulation of a variety of materials indicates the high status of its wearer. It is made from leather strips and finely accessorized with a combination of intricately patterned bead designs, cowries, seashells, and bells. It would have been worn over a large raffia skirt by a man during ceremonial occasions. It was acquired from the Belgian dealer Jacques Hautelet in 1994. wall description: Belts are one of the many accessories that accompany a wrapper. The most spectacular of the different types of belts is the one called yet, which can only be worn by male and female members of the royal family. The king himself displays it on the day following his actual installation. In the past, the Kuba king commissioned his wardrobe from a specialized guild of tailors. --- RELATED WORKS --- CITATIONS Cleveland Museum of Art, “Recent Acquisitions to the Cleveland Museum of Art Collection,” August 26, 1994, Cleveland Museum of Art Archives. page number: url: https://archive.org/details/cmapr3900/page/n1 Petridis, Constantijn. South of the Sahara: selected works of African art. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2003. page number: Reproduced: cat. 36, p. 102 - 103 url: Nzewi, Ugochukwu-Smooth C. Second Careers : Two Tributaries in African Art. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 2019 page number: Mentioned: p. 22, 32; reproduced: p. 62, pl. 8. url: https://ingallslibrary.on.worldcat.org/oclc/1090438741 Nzewi, Ugochukwu-Smooth C. Second Careers : Two Tributaries in African Art. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 2019 page number: Mentioned: p. 22, 32; reproduced: p. 62, pl. 8. url: https://ingallslibrary.on.worldcat.org/oclc/1090438741 Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland Art: The Cleveland Museum of Art Members Magazine. Vol. 38 no. 05, May 1998 page number: Mentioned & reproduced: p. 2 url: https://archive.org/details/CMAMM1998-05/page/n1 --- IMAGES web: https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1994.87/1994.87_web.jpg print: https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1994.87/1994.87_print.jpg full: https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1994.87/1994.87_full.tif