Bamenda Ceremonial Pipe - Flower Form

A long stem ending in a ruffled little bowl shaped like a bloom.

This terra cotta ceremonial pipe in the form of a flower is Bamenda, from Cameroon, Central Africa, and dates to the 20th century. Terra cotta is low-fired, unglazed clay that potters can model by hand into detailed animal and plant shapes before it is burnished or left with a matte surface. Slender, tapering stem in muted gray-brown with a few fine incised lines running along its length. At one end sits a small bowl ringed with rounded, petal-like lobes. The surface is matte and slightly rough, with tonal variation along the stem. It is 7.5 inches wide, 1.75 deep and 1.75 high.

Practical design, then a flower on top for good manners.