Gurunsi Lidded Storage Vessel

Safe and dry. That was the whole brief.

Gurunsi potters of Burkina Faso made this lidded vessel in the 20th century to keep household goods. Pots of this kind were often suspended or tied shut with cords, and this one still carries its original fiber rigging. A painted lattice of dark diamonds decorates the reddish-brown shoulder, above a row of small pierced holes and a short projecting lug. The conical lid, crazed and worn on top, is fastened with a small fiber loop, and long twisted cords drape to tasseled ends.

Eight and a half inches. Careful decoration, practical heart.