Dr. Kathryn Wysocki Gunsch

About Dr. Kathryn Wysocki Gunsch

Dr. Kathryn Wysocki Gunsch is Teel Curator of African and Oceanic Art at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston and author of "The Benin Plaques: A 16th Century Imperial Monument," Oxford: Routledge, 2018.

Detail of Oba, Benin plaque, MFA, Boston — How to impress your courtiers: a lesson from the Kingdom of Benin

Benin Plaques

Kota reliquary figure (mbulu ngulu), late 19th to early 20th century, Gabon, wood, copper, brass, and bone, 59.69 cm high (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston) — These reliquary figures helped a nomadic society to honor their loved ones after death.

Kota reliquary (mbulu ngulu)

Detail of Oba, Benin plaque, MFA, Boston — How to impress your courtiers: a lesson from the Kingdom of Benin

Benin Plaques