Milk or butter jar "chkoua" ·  Northern Algeria, Kabylia, Amazigh (Berber) Culture or Morocco, Rif Region, Beni-Ouarain (Berber) Culture · ID: 3048178

Description

terracotta / ceramic, rest.

The pottery is covered with red or white slip before burnishing with a pebble or shell. After open firing, the piece is painted with geometric patterns and motifs, sealed by heating.

Amazigh people are the descendants of the indigenous inhabitants of northern Africa. Their beautiful vessels were and still are made exclusively by women.

Historically pot making took place during the dry season in relation to agricultural tasks. Each woman made only what she needed for her own household use. Selling pottery was an admission of poverty but accepted as a modest source of income for widows.

The object Milk or butter jar “chkoua” with the object ID 3048178 was last part of the auction 97th Auction at November 6, 2021 on Zemanek-Münster Auction house. The object with the lot number 117 achieved a sales price of EUR 450.

Here you will find more objects and interesting facts about African art.

Comparing literature

Nollert, Angelika (Hg.), Afrikanische Keramik aus der Sammlung Franz von Bayern, München 2019, p. 40, cat. 203