Object Details
- Label Text
- Popular among fashionable Wolof and Tukulor women of Senegal during the 1940s and 1950s, this wig is the central component of a dramatic ensemble including gold ornaments and known as a "gossi." The small but ornate gold ornaments are worn in clusters of three on either side of the head, and sewn into the crook of the wig's curled, horn-like projections. To be worn, the hair is shaved halfway back on the scalp, and the wig positioned at the top, front of the head and sewn into the remaining hair. Donned only by older, married women, "gossi" hairstyles are always black in color and made of raffia fibers or yarn.
- Description
- Wig of raffia fiber, tightly wound, coiled and braided, tapering into a curved crescent on either side of wig to frame the face. Various twisted and braided coils are present to keep the wig in place or assist in sewing it to the hair. Dyed black.
- Provenance
- Marian Johnson, purchased in Dakar, Senegal, 1963-late 20th century to 2012
- Exhibition History
- Good As Gold: Fashioning Senegalese Women, National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., October 24, 2018-February 2, 2020; North Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh, September 16, 2020-January 3, 2021
- African Mosaic: Selections from the Permanent Collection, National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., November 19, 2013–August 12, 2019 (installed February 13, 2015-August 1, 2017)
- Content Statement
- As part of our commitment to accessibility and transparency, the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art is placing its collection records online. Please note that some records are incomplete (missing image or content descriptions) and others reflect out-of-date language or systems of thought regarding how to engage with and discuss cultural heritage and the specifics of individual artworks. If you see content requiring immediate action, we will do our best to address it in a timely manner. Please email nmafacuratorial@si.edu if you have any questions.
- Image Requests
- High resolution digital images are not available for some objects. For publication quality photography and permissions, please contact the Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives at https://africa.si.edu/research/eliot-elisofon-photographic-archives/
- Data Source
- National Museum of African Art
- Maker
- Tukulor artist
- Wolof artist
- Date
- 1940s-1950s
- Credit Line
- Gift of Dr. Marian Ashby Johnson
- Medium
- Raffia
- Dimensions
- H x W x D: 19 x 27 x 5.7 cm (7 1/2 x 10 5/8 x 2 1/4 in.)
- Type
- Textile and Fiber Arts
