Sansi-Roca, Roger. 2005. The Hidden Life of Stones: Historicity, Materiality and the Value of Candomblé Objects in Bahia. Journal of Material Culture, 10(2), pp. 139-156. ISSN 1359-1835 [Article]

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Abstract or Description

In the last century, the objects of Candomblé, a religion of African origin in Bahia, suffered radical transformations in their public value. After discussing in general terms the life of ‘saint’ stones (otã) in Candomblé, this article then focuses on the traces of the life history of one of these otã. This stone was seized in a police raid in a Candomblé house, and then displayed in a museum, until a legal action recently undertaken by political activists obliged the museum to withdraw the stone from exhibition. In the conclusion, I propose to recognize notions of historicity and materiality as keys to understanding the life and ‘agency’ of this and other objects.

Item Type:	Article
Identification Number (DOI):	https://doi.org/10.1177/1359183505053072
Additional Information:	This was awarded the Alfred Gell Prize (2005).
Keywords:	Candomble, historicity, materiality, museums
Departments, Centres and Research Units:	Anthropology
Dates:	Date Event July 2005 Published
Item ID:	11108
Date Deposited:	12 Jan 2015 10:58
Last Modified:	30 Jul 2024 10:13
Peer Reviewed:	Yes, this version has been peer-reviewed.
URI:	https://research.gold.ac.uk/id/eprint/11108

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