MUSEUM NEWS
ABOVE: Elephant head.
Ife, Lafogido, Nigeria.
12th–15th century.
Terracotta. H: 15.5 cm.
Nigerian National Commission
for Museums and Monuments,
inv. 63/24a.
Image courtesy of National
Commission for Museums
and Monuments, Abuja,
Nigeria.
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Caravans of Gold
CHICAGO—A new exhibition at the Block Museum
at Northwestern University, Caravans of Gold: Fragments
in Time is the fi rst major exhibition addressing
the scope of Saharan trade and the shared history of
West Africa, the Middle East, North Africa, and Europe
from the eighth to sixteenth centuries. Weaving
stories about interconnected histories, the exhibition
showcases the objects and ideas that connected at the
crossroads of the medieval Sahara and celebrates West
Africa’s historic and under-recognized global signifi -
cance. The exhibition draws upon recent archaeological
discoveries, including rare fragments from major
medieval African trading centers like Sijilmasa, Gao,
and Tadmekka. These “fragments in time” are seen
alongside works of art that invite us to imagine them
as they once were. It features more than 250 artworks
spanning a vast geographic expanse, and it includes
unprecedented loans from partner institutions in Mali,
Morocco, and Nigeria, many of which are being seen
in North America for the fi rst time.
On view at the Block until July 21, 2019, Caravans of
Gold will move on to the Aga Khan Museum in Toronto
and the National Museum of African Art in
Washington, D.C. It is accompanied by a
fully illustrated catalog.
800 Years of Artistic Exchange
ST. LOUIS—Weavers in the present-day southwestern
United States and northern Mexico have long employed
diverse artistic practices and materials to create
distinctive textiles. Groups have traded yarns and
dyes, designs and technologies, and fi nished products
across this region and the world.
Southwest Weavings: 800 Years of Artistic Exchange
presents thirteen outstanding wearing blankets and
rugs and explores the layers of global migration and
trade in these textiles. Native American Diné (Navajo)
artists, the most famous group of southwestern weavers,
adapted Pueblo-style upright looms from their
neighbors and wool from Churro sheep introduced by
Spanish colonists. Trade brought far-fl ung garments
to New Mexico which inspired Diné designs, and the
products of Diné looms traveled hundreds of miles
through Native and colonial networks. In the late-nineteenth
century, Diné textiles exploded with color as
pre-spun yarns with synthetic dyes became available.
On view until May 5, 2019 at the St. Louis Museum
of Art, the exhibition also celebrates the recent gift of
southwestern textiles and related works from St. Louis
collectors Elissa and Paul Cahn.
RIGHT: Serape.
Diné (Navajo), southwestern
United States. C. 1865.
Wool, dye. 130.8 x 84.5 cm.
St. Louis Museum of Art, gift of Elissa
and Paul Cahn, inv. 230:2017.
BELOW: Seated fi gure.
Possibly Ife, Tada, Nigeria.
Late 13th–14th century.
Copper with traces of arsenic, lead,
and tin. H: 54 cm.
Nigerian National Commission for
Museums and Monuments, inv.
79.R18.
Image courtesy of National
Commission for Museums and
Monuments, Abuja, Nigeria.
BOTTOM RIGHT:
Gold jewelry.
Tumulus 7, Durbi Takusheyi,
Nigeria. 13th–15th century.
National Commission for Museums
and Monuments, Abuja, Nigeria.
Photo: René Müller.