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Necklace

20th century

Red beads and red ochre are combined with giraffe hair to create a necklace that is distinctive for Samburu women. Collecting beads is a lifetime occupation, starting with young girls who acquire beads from their admirers and display them to define and reinforce her beauty. A collar that mounds up can come close to covering her chin and indicates a woman who is rewarded with abundant gifts. The final cosmetic preparation is still evident-animal fat and ochre coat the neck rings.

Glass, beads, leather, and hair

12 1/16 x 4 in. (30.6 x 10.2 cm)

L.: 12 9/16 in.

Gift of Katherine White and the Boeing Company

81.17.1067

Not currently on view

Resources

Exhibition HistoryBellevue, Washington, Bellevue Art Museum, The Ubiquitous Bead, September 5 - October 25, 1987

Seattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, African Panoplies: Art for Rulers, Traders, Hunters, and Priests, Apr. 21 - Aug. 14, 1988.

Seattle, Washington, The Museum: Mixed Metaphors, Anne Gerber Exhibition: Fred Wilson, January 28 - June 13, 1993

Seattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, A Bead Quiz, July 1, 2008 - July 1, 2009

Published ReferencesBurt, Eugene C., East African Art in the Collection of the Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, WA: Seattle Art Museum, 1985, no. 13, p. 20

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