Hand Puppet Item Number: 3381/25 from the MOA: University of British Columbia
Description
Calungo hand puppet of a 'Tenente (lieutenant) Afonsinho' character. Head and hands are carved from wood and painted. He has dark grey skin, large circular black eyes, small nose, thin moustache and closed mouth with thin dark red lips. He has painted short black hair, mostly covered by a wrapped head scarf. His fabric body / tunic is a dark green military camouflage fabric. The fabric is nailed to the hands and head. Operated by inserting a hand inside the body of the puppet to control its head and movements.
History Of Use
The puppet represents a character from a form of popular puppet theatre, found in northeastern Brazil, called mamulengo. This type of theatre is prevalent in disenfranchised communities with ancestral ties to colonized Indigenous peoples and uprooted, enslaved Africans. Mamulengo performances are entertaining events that can last all night long, with puppeteers (mamulengueiros) using 70 to 100 puppets in one staging. The stages are pop-up stands (empanadas), made of brightly coloured, floral-printed cloth. The shows consist of short sequences (passagens), or skits from popular stories that expose the inequalities and dramas of everyday life, profiling stock characters such as rich landowners and peasant labourers. The whole is spun together with humour, satire, lively music, and audience commentary.
Item History
- Made by Marcos Araujo (Maker) in Icapui, Ceara, Brazil during 2018
- Owned by Associacao Cultural de Amigos do Museu de Folclore Edison Carneiro before July 25, 2019
- Received from Associacao Cultural de Amigos do Museu de Folclore Edison Carneiro (Seller) and Museum of Anthropology Exhibitions Budget (Funding source) on July 25, 2019
What
Who
- Culture
- Brazilian
- Creator
- Marcos Araujo (Maker)
- Previous Owner
- Associacao Cultural de Amigos do Museu de Folclore Edison Carneiro
- Received from
- Associacao Cultural de Amigos do Museu de Folclore Edison Carneiro (Seller) and Museum of Anthropology Exhibitions Budget (Funding source)
Where
- Holding Institution
- MOA: University of British Columbia
- Made in
- Icapui, Ceara, Brazil
When
- Creation Date
- during 2018
- Ownership Date
- before July 25, 2019
- Acquisition Date
- on July 25, 2019
Other
- Condition
- good
- Accession Number
- 3381/0025