Images(4)

Woman's Neckrest with Chevron Design

Artist Rendille artist

Dateearly to mid-20th century

MediumWood and beads

Dimensions6 3/8 × 9 × 8 1/2 in. (16.2 × 22.9 × 21.6 cm)

Classifications(none assigned)

Credit LineGift of Ernest Wolfe IV

Object number2019.23.10

On View

On view

Label TextIn Kenya, Uganda, and Somalia, a person’s status and membership in an age grade (a specific generation) might be conveyed by a hairstyle or by the style of a neckrest or stool. Elaborate coiffures took hours or even days to create and needed to be protected when sleeping. Neckrests were considered to be both useful and beautiful objects in these contexts and indicated the efforts and love of the community that helped to plait or style the user’s hair.

Note the beads embedded within the neckrest and the embellishment of one of the legs. This may indicate that this was owned and used by a woman.ProvenanceCreated in Kenya before 1976, likely early to mid–20th century; purchased in southern Kenya, almost to Samburuland near Wamba by Ernest Ervin Wolfe III, Los Angeles, 1976; transferred to son, Ernest Ervin Wolfe IV, Los Angeles; given to NCMA, 2019.
Exhibition HistoryRaleigh, NC, North Carolina Museum of Art, "The People's Collection, Reimagined," October 7, 2022–present. Object Rights Statement

The North Carolina Museum of Art (NCMA) makes images of its collection available online to support research and scholarship and to inform and educate the public. Certain works of art, as well as the photographs of those works of art, may be protected by copyright, trademark, or related interests not owned by the NCMA. The responsibility for ascertaining whether any such rights exist and for obtaining all other necessary permissions remains with the applicant. To request images and/or permissions from the NCMA, please complete our online request form.