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Doorlock

20th century

Bamana people of Mali put locks shaped like people on granary doors as a reminder that when you steal, you steal from someone nearby. Forever vigilant, the human form is abstracted to suit this function as the central pillar contains a shaft for the middle bolt to slide through. The "bloom" on the surface comes from wax, oils-even preservatives like arsenic-that were used to treat the wood in the past.

Wood with patination

16 x 16 x 2 1/4 in. (40.64 x 40.64 x 5.72 cm)

Gift of Mark Groudine and Cynthia Putnam

97.64

Not currently on view

Resources

Exhibition HistorySeattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, The Untold Story, November 14, 2003 - November 14, 2004

Seattle Art Museum respectfully acknowledges that we are on Indigenous land, the traditional territories of the Coast Salish people. We honor our ongoing connection to these communities past, present, and future.

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