Deck 37: Africa, 1800 to 1980

Question 1

Masquerades have long been a quintessential African expressive form loaded with meaning and cultural importance. Masquerades provided governmental functions for stateless societies. Which of the following groups of peoples would have masquerades?

A) Senufo
B) Baule
C) Kongo
D) Kota

Answer 1

A

Question 2

The Akan linguist staff becomes a metaphor for the king or chief and can be carried into a meeting where an individual would be contesting the king's title to the stool. Who would carry this staff?

A) The king's principal wife
B) An important counselor and adviser
C) The king's first son
D) The king himself

Answer 2

B

Question 3

Kongo peoples have power figures that a trained priest must consecrate. These figures embody powerful spirits. Which of the following are those figures?

A) Genetrix
B) Nkisi n'kondi
C) Waka sran
D) Mbulu ngulu

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Why are bush spirits depicted as beautiful, ideal human figures in Baule sculpture?

A) So that the bush spirits do not get offended
B) Because the Baule believe bush spirits are beautiful
C) Because bush spirits are repelled by beauty
D) To attract beautiful bush spirits

Question 5

In Mende culture a broad, high forehead signifies which of the following?

A) Fertility
B) Wisdom and success
C) Motherhood
D) Kinship

Question 6

Which of the following describes Baule bush spirits?

A) They are tall with elongated necks and torsos.
B) They are tall and muscular.
C) They are short, horrible-looking, and sometimes deformed.
D) They are short with exaggerated heads.

Question 7

The Akan akua'ba sculptures are consecrated at shrines for young women to carry in order to ____.

A) placate the great spirits
B) ensure a good harvest
C) ensure the safe delivery of a healthy and handsome child
D) ward off the crocodile spirit of adversity

Question 8

Which of the following supports the necessity of animal sacrifice made by the Benin king?

A) It propitiates the great ancestor spirit.
B) It appeases the evil demons.
C) It certifies his power over the animal kingdom.
D) It invokes the collective strength of his ancestor kings.

Question 9

The royal ancestral shrine of the Benin represents both the kings and the enduring nature of kingship. Which of the following characteristics represents this notion?

A) The carved elephant tusks reveal the enduring nature of kingship.
B) The durability of the material reiterates the enduring nature of kingship.
C) The carved elephant tusks stand guard over the enduring nature of kingship.
D) The placement of the heads reiterates the enduring nature of kingship.

Question 10

How does the sculpture of the Dogon differ from the sculpture of the Kongo?

A) Dogon sculpture is strongly stylized.
B) Dogon sculpture is relatively naturalistic.
C) Dogon sculpture is strongly realistic.
D) Dogon sculpture is relatively realistic.

Question 11

The door carved by Olowe of Ise is a very fine example of his work. It also records the presence of the Europeans as colonists among the Yoruba. What event is depicted on the doors?

A) The arrival of Britain's first traveling commissioner to the Ondo province
B) The arrival of the Dutch in South Africa
C) The surrender of the Yoruba king
D) A battle scene

Question 12

What is the primary function of masks and masqueraders in traditional African culture?

A) To amuse participants
B) To intimidate enemy tribes
C) To act as mediators
D) To impress observers

Question 13

Rock painting was among the most ancient traditions in African art and continued into the 19th century. Some scenes depict the presence of Europeans. Many examples have been found in which of the following countries?

A) Zaire
B) South Africa
C) Benin
D) Gabon

Question 14

In Dogon society, the Satimbe mask represents all women and commemorates the creation legend. Which of the following is part of that legend?

A) Women were the first ancestors to imitate spirit maskers.
B) Women were the first ancestors to anger the spirit maskers.
C) Women were forbidden by the spirit maskers to consort with men.
D) Women were forbidden by the spirit maskers to wear masks.

Question 15

The following two important masks represent the Kuba king's legendary ancestors. They are the founding ancestor, Woot, and his daughter, the beautiful Ngady Amwaash. During childbirth she sheds tears. What accounts for these tears?

A) The knowledge of her role as legendary ancestress
B) In order to procreate she must commit incest with her father
C) Her father kills her first child
D) She must kill her father in order to establish the royal line

Question 16

How do Mende masks symbolize the ancestral female spirits?

A) The glistening black surfaces of the masks evoke the ancestral female spirits.
B) The dove forms atop the masks evoke the ancestral female spirits.
C) The wide-open eyes of the masks evoke the ancestral female spirits.
D) The cowrie-shell headdresses atop the masks evoke the ancestral female spirits.

Question 17

Senufo men dance many masks, most in the context of the Poro society. Which of the following describes this society?

A) An association for clan elders
B) An association for wives
C) An association for socialization and male initiation
D) An association for socialization and female initiation

Question 18

Which of the following describes the Akan style trait that is found in both clay and wood sculpture?

A) Conventionalized, flattened heads
B) Glistening black surfaces
C) Neck ridges
D) Wide, broad foreheads

Question 19

What are waka sran?

A) Masks of the dead ancestors, Baule
B) First ancestors, Dogon
C) People of wood, Baule
D) Female spirits, Mende

Question 20

The Igbo peoples traditionally build mbari houses. Why are mbari houses built?

A) For shelter
B) For ceremonies to honor the earth goddess
C) For the storage of goods
D) To serve as a men's meetinghouse

Question 21

Most Baule figural sculptures are kept in which of the following?

A) Personal shrines
B) Public shrines
C) Holy enclosures
D) Village plazas

Question 22

How does the seated couple carved by the Dogon represent defined gender roles?

Question 23

Kongo nkisi n'kondi are believed to do which of the following?

A) Heal
B) Take on the spirit of its creator
C) Communicate with the animals
D) House the soul of the firstborn

Question 24

What kind of veneration is quite common among African cultures?

A) Astrological
B) Ancestor
C) Elders
D) Child

Question 25

The linked seated couple that clearly documents the gender roles would have been created in which of the following groups?

A) Dogon
B) Baule
C) Kongo
D) Senufo

Question 26

Most figures and masks are visualizations of which of the following?

A) Political forces
B) Supernatural forces
C) Natural occurrences
D) Royalty

Question 27

Why do many African groups venerate their ancestors?

Question 28

Which of the following can describe Kongo nkisi n'kondi figures.

A) They were all alike.
B) They all wore cowrie shells and shared medicines.
C) Each had its own role and particular medicines.
D) Each had its own particular medicines and shared many roles.

Question 29

Elaborate cyclical masquerades occur in which of the following societies?

A) Baule
B) Mende
C) Kongo
D) Dogon

Question 30

Which of the following is the name for the ceremonies the Dogon hold every several years in order to honor the lives of those who have died since the last celebration?

A) Poro celebration
B) Dama
C) Gelede masquerade
D) Samburu

Question 31

How do the rock paintings of the South African San people document their environment?

Question 32

In which of the following societies can women control and dance certain masks?

A) Mende
B) Benin
C) Kongo
D) Kuba

Question 33

How does the regalia of the Kuba king reflect that society?

Question 34

What was the principal transportation route for the peoples of central Africa during the 19th century, fostering trade and cultural exchange?

A) The Trans-African Railroad
B) The Nile River
C) The Congo River
D) The Yombe Roadway

Question 35

What is the purpose of a finely decorated stool or chair?

Question 36

A Dogon men's hous, or togu na, is important to the community because the deliberations, which take place under the sheltering roof, are vital to the community. Which of the following would accurately translate into English the meaning of togu na?

A) The house of the elders
B) The house of judgment
C) The house of men
D) Men's house of words

Question 37

The Mbari construction process is characterized by____.

A) artistic collaboration
B) royal ritual
C) the devotion of a single artist
D) kinship ritual

Question 38

The Kuba mask known as Bwoom represents which of the following of the legendary royal ancestors?

A) The first female and all women
B) The founding ancestor
C) The pygmy or dwarf who signifies the indigenous peoples of the king
D) The heavy, terrorizing first male and all men

Question 39

The Kota of Gabon produced reliquary guardian figures, called mbula ngulu. How did the Gabon finish the reliquary guardian's surface in order to repel evil?

A) They textured the surface with divers.
B) They applied gleaming sheets of polished copper and brass.
C) They covered the surface with a dark patina.
D) They applied animal fur to the surface.

Question 40

Briefly describe African art production.

Question 41

Contrast Dogon and Baule figural sculpture. How do these works represent their respective societies?

Question 42

Contrast royal authority and regalia with kingly presentation of the Benin and Kuba. How did history shape their respective views, and how have they responded to the 20th century? Use examples to support your essay.

Question 43

How does the female Mende mask evoke the female spirit?

Question 44

What characterizes African art?

Question 45

How does the Kongo figural sculpture mirror Kongo society? How does it represent their belief systems, and how does this differ from the figural sculpture of the Dogon? Use examples to support your essay.

Question 46

How does the royal ancestral altar reflect the power of the Benin king?

Question 47

What does the royal regalia of the Kuba king represent?

Question 48

How does the Akan linguist staff represent the king and the proverb "Food is for its rightful owner, not for the one who happens to be hungry"?

Question 49

How has the role of masks and masquerades changed since African nations gained their independence?

Question 50

How are the Mende and their masking tradition unique?

Question 51

Describe the change and continuing evolution of African art. Use examples to support your essay.

Question 52

Describe the impact of European and American contact on 20th-century African art. Include the contemporary influences as well. How have European and American contact changed African art and perceptions? Use examples to support your essay.

Question 53

What is the function of maskers at Senufo funerals?

Question 54

How do the large composite Senufo masks function in their society?

Question 55

What is the Sande society of the Mende?

Question 56

Dogon masquerades dramatize creation legends. What does Dogon legend say about the creation of the masquerade?

Question 57

What is the function of the Poro society in Senufo culture?

Question 58

What is the Dama?

Question 59

Contrast Kuba and Senufo masks. How does each function within its respective society?

Question 60

How do Dogon masquerades assist in the transformations of the deceased?

Question 61

What is being expressed in this representation?

Question 62

How does this figure represent royalty?

Question 63

What is the figure that tops this mask, and what does it signify?

Question 64

How is this sculpture unique?

Question 65

Describe the purpose of these two constructions.

Question 66

Describe the roles of men and women in African societies. How do these roles affect the art forms? How are the roles changing, and what impact do these changes have on the art forms? Use examples to support your essay.

Question 67

Describe the use of personal adornment to indicate social status in Africa. How does it reflect cultural values? Use examples to support your essay.

Question 68

What is the function of this figure?

Question 69

How does this mask differ from a "Beautiful Lady" mask?

Question 70

Explain the interplay of realism and abstraction in African art. How does it amplify spiritual belief systems, and how is it changing? Use examples to support your essay.

Question 71

What do these figures represent?

Question 72

How do these people represent their personalities?

Question 73

What groups are responsible for these two heads? What materials are used, and what function did the objects serve?

Question 74

What is the narrative displayed on these doors?