{
"data": {
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"accession_number": "2010.435",
"share_license_status": "CC0",
"tombstone": "Flywhisk, late 1800s-early 1900s. Africa, Central Africa, Democratic Republic of Congo (most likely), Cabinda, or Republic of the Congo, probably Yombe-style maker. Wood and animal hair; overall: 30 x 16 x 18 cm (11 13/16 x 6 5/16 x 7 1/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Ren\u00e9 and Odette Delenne Collection, Leonard C. Hanna Jr. Fund, 2010.435",
"current_location": null,
"title": "Flywhisk",
"creation_date": "late 1800s-early 1900s",
"creation_date_earliest": 1880,
"creation_date_latest": 1920,
"artists_tags": [],
"culture": [
"Africa, Central Africa, Democratic Republic of Congo (most likely), Cabinda, or Republic of the Congo, probably Yombe-style maker"
],
"technique": "Wood and animal hair",
"support_materials": [],
"department": "African Art",
"collection": "African Art",
"type": "Sculpture",
"measurements": "Overall: 30 x 16 x 18 cm (11 13/16 x 6 5/16 x 7 1/16 in.)",
"dimensions": {
"overall": {
"height": 0.3,
"height_inch": 11,
"height_inch_fraction": 0.8125,
"width": 0.16,
"width_inch": 6,
"width_inch_fraction": 0.3125,
"depth": 0.18,
"depth_inch": 7,
"depth_inch_fraction": 0.0625
}
},
"state_of_the_work": null,
"edition_of_the_work": null,
"copyright": null,
"inscriptions": [],
"exhibitions": {
"current": [
{
"id": 202001,
"title": "Fragments of the Invisible: The Ren\u00e9 and Odette Delenne Collection of Congo Sculpture",
"description": "Fragments of the Invisible: The Ren\u00e9 and Odette Delenne Collection of Congo Sculpture. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 27, 2013-February 9, 2014).",
"opening_date": "2013-10-27T00:00:00"
}
],
"legacy": []
},
"provenance": [
{
"description": "(Ren\u00e9 De Wolf, Brussels, BE before 1972, sold to Ren\u00e9 and Odette Delenne)",
"citations": [],
"footnotes": [],
"date": "?-1972",
"sortorder": 1
},
{
"description": "Ren\u00e9 [1901-1998] and Odette Delenne [1925-2012], Brussels, BE, 2010, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art.",
"citations": [],
"footnotes": null,
"date": "1972-2010",
"sortorder": 2
},
{
"description": "The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH, 2010",
"citations": [],
"footnotes": [],
"date": "2010",
"sortorder": 3
}
],
"find_spot": null,
"related_works": [],
"former_accession_numbers": [],
"did_you_know": "Rarely do flywhisks depict a female figure.",
"early_education_description": null,
"artlens_description": null,
"description": "In Central Africa, flywhisks denoted status, rank, and function, rather than used to whisk away flies. Commonly associated with chiefs and titleholders, they were also owned by diviners and healers. Their purpose may also have been used to purify spaces, bless people, places, or things, and settle disputes. Flywhisks rarely depict women; yet this finely carved miniature of a woman kneeling signifies obedience and respect.",
"external_resources": {
"wikidata": [
"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q80075068"
],
"internet_archive": [
"https://archive.org/details/clevelandart-2010.435-flywhisk"
]
},
"citations": [
{
"citation": "Petridis, Constantine, et al. Fragments of the Invisible: The Rene\u0301 and Odette Delenne Collection of Congo Sculpture. Cleveland, OH: Cleveland Museum of Art. Milan: 5 Continents Editions, 2013, 62.",
"page_number": "Reproduced: p. 62; mentioned: p. 113, cat. 22",
"url": null
}
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"legal_status": "accessioned",
"accession_date": "2010-09-07T04:00:00Z",
"sortable_date": 1880,
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"updated_at": "2026-07-28 15:33:41.130000"
}
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