Producer unknown to us
Feather ear studs
Americas, Brazil, Mato Grosso, Source of the Xingu River
Around 1950
Feathers, cane, wood, resin; tied and glued
From the 1950s to the 1970s, Erich Wustmann (ethnologist, author) undertook numerous expeditions and journeys to collect items for museums. He sold the acquired objects to the museums in Leipzig and Dresden.
Purchased by the museum from Wustmann in 1957
SAm 21596 a, b
The Kamayurá wore these ear studs to festive occasions such as the Fish Dance.
The wooden ear stakes are inserted into a cane stick, and the feathers are wrapped with cotton thread and glued together with resin.
Ethnologist and author Erich Wustmann (1907–1994) acquired this piece during an expedition for the Leipzig museum in 1958.
Frank Usbeck