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View at the museum ↗Armlet (Gungulu)
GurunsiLate 19th/early 20th century
- Attribution
- Gurunsi Burkina Faso Northern Africa and the Sahel
- Medium
- Ivory and iron
- Physical dimensions
- 11.4 × 22.2 × 5.1 cm (4 1/2 × 8 3/4 × 2 in.)
- Credit line
- Gift of Paula Zurcher in memory of Elizabeth Paepcke
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View the museum record ↗From the museum
The Gurunsi encompass many cultural groups who are linked through their use of the common Gur language. Ivory armlets ( gungulu ) are worn by Gurunsi women in the Upper Volta region of present-day Burkina Faso. The Gurunsi treat repairs as an opportunity to enhance the design, as seen in the delicate iron tabs on this armlet. This piece, formed lengthwise from the hollow segment of the tusk, is composed of a curved rectangular section with a central hole that would have exposed the skin of the wearer.
Description: Art Institute of Chicago · CC BY 4.0