The museum’s collection of African art contains approximately 1,800 objects that reflect the size and diversity of the continent. Highlights include the Kom Beaded Bowl Figure from the Cameroon Grassfields, used by royalty to hold kola nuts for their guests; Mami Wata, the Ibibio water spirit from Southeast Nigeria; the Makonde Lipiko mask from northern Mozambique; and a Koranic writing tablet from Ethiopia. [posted: Mar 04, 2004]

The de Young's African art collection features work from many areas of sub-Saharan Africa. You can search through it's collection online (unfortunately photos, as of this writing, are not very high resolution). [posted: Mar 04, 2004]

Explore the museum's collections as well as its past exhibitions of "tradition-based" as well as contemporary arts. The site produces special web presentations for most of its exhibitions, and an archive of these is available online. In the collection area of the site you are able to search over 10,000 works in its database. [posted: Mar 04, 2004]

"One of the largest collections of African arts in the United States, the Fowler Museum’s holdings encompass metalwork, wood carvings, textiles, musical instruments, popular urban arts, and ceramics. These arts come from throughout the African continent and span millennia, reflecting the vibrancy and diversity of the arts from nearly every time period and region of the continent." Search the digital collection, and past exhibits. [posted: Mar 04, 2004]

"The African collection at the Penn Museum is one of the largest collections in the country. The collection includes approximately 15,000 ethnographic and 5,000 archaeological objects and most of the collection was obtained between 1891 and 1937. Although many of the artifacts can be appreciated from a purely artistic or aesthetic standpoint, the Museum's main interest in them is as an ethnographic study collection. The collection therefore contains everything from masks and statuary to architectural pieces, clothing, musical instruments and ordinary household implements." [posted: Mar 04, 2004]

The Museum' permanent exhibits include its remarkable collection of ethnographic objects from Central Africa. The temporary exhibitions aim to be a podium for contemporary African art and science. [posted: Mar 04, 2004]

"From shrine figures to palace pillars to historic men’s masks, the MFA’s department of African and Oceanic art includes important works from the 16th to 21st century that span two continents. Decorative arts, including clothing, headrests, staffs, and tableware, introduce visitors to the art of everyday life during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Masks and artworks used in dance give a glimpse into the multimedia performance art tradition of masquerade." Search the image database for thousand of African items. [posted: Nov 17, 2022]

"The Brooklyn Museum was one of the first museums in the United States to collect and exhibit the Arts of Africa. Our collection focuses primarily on historical works from Western, Central, Southern, and Eastern Africa, and includes contemporary art from across the continent. Numbering approximately 4,500 works, and spanning from 200 C.E. to today, the Arts of Africa collection is one of the most important of its kind in a U.S. art museum and covers millennia of African creativity." [posted: Nov 19, 2022]

"The Met's collection of art of the peoples of sub-Saharan Africa, the Pacific Islands, and North, Central, and South America comprises more than eleven thousand works of art of varied materials and types, representing diverse cultural traditions from as early as 3000 B.C.E. to the present. Highlights include decorative and ceremonial objects from the Court of Benin in Nigeria; sculpture from West and Central Africa." [posted: Nov 19, 2022]

"African and African Diaspora artists creating works of art, from Ancient Egypt to today. The collection includes masterworks of sculpture, ceramics, metalwork, and textiles, reflecting the diversity of African regions and cultures." You can browse thousand of objects online. [posted: Nov 22, 2022]