Accession Number
2000/2.30

Title
Pipe Bowl

Artist(s)

Object Creation Date
circa 1890-1920

Medium & Support
brass

Dimensions
3 1/8 in x 2 3/16 in x 1 in (7.94 cm x 5.56 cm x 2.54 cm)

Credit Line
Gift of Dr. James and Vivian Curtis

Subject matter
This object is listed as made by Kirdi peoples; while most likely correct, it is not without issue. “Kirdi”, meaning pagan, was the label given to the various peoples from northern Cameroon, northeastern Nigeria, and southern Chad by neighboring Fulani and Kanuri peoples because they did not practice Islam, while the latter do. The people collectively known as “Kirdi” are actually many different cultural groups with their own customs. However, due to a lack of information on where exactly this object came from, it is not possible to say with certainty which group of people created it.

Cast from brass, tobacco pipe bowls may have once been prestige items. They are part of a group of objects related to smoking, including brass snuff containers and powder horns. 

References Cited: 
Gebauer, Paul. 1979. Art of Cameroon. Portland, Or.: Portland Art Museum. 
Lembezat, Bertrand. 1961. Les populations païennes du Nord-Cameroun et de l'Adamaoua. Paris: Presses Universitaires de France.
Lembezat, Bertrand. 1952. Mukulehe; un clan montagnard du Nord-Cameroun; coutumes, rites, croyances. Paris: Berger-Levrault.
Northern, Tamara. 1984. The Art of Cameroon. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution. 
Page, Donna. 2007. A Cameroon World. New York: QCC Art Gallery Press.

Physical Description
A cast brass pipe bowl with a leaf design around the stem end and a design of horizontal grooves around the bottom, near the small round base. 

Primary Object Classification
Personal Accessory

Primary Object Type
pipe

Collection Area
African

Rights
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Objects We Use
bowl
pipes
pipes (smoking equipment)
smoking (activity)
tobacco (material)