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This sculpture shows a rural boy looking after his family’s water buffalo. It is a quintessentially Vietnamese scene and appears symbolically on many and varied items. The boy and buffalo are separate pieces and attach via a nail on the underside of the boy and a hole on the back of the buffalo. The buffalo has been painted black with two white swirl patterns present on the back and flank. There is a string attached through the nose and around the horn of the buffalo. The ears, tail and hinge piece connecting the head and body are all made from leather decorated with painted motifs. The eyes, mouth and nose are carved into the wood and are also painted for greater effect. The boy, sitting with one leg crossed under him, is painted white and is depicted with a loincloth in brown and gold around his waist.
Oriental Museum Collection, Durham University
Durham
Title
Boy Sitting on the Back of a Water Buffalo
Date
2014
Medium
wood
Measurements
H 44 x W 50 x D 14 cm
Accession number
DUROM.2015.327
Work type
Sculpture