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Head from a Ball Toss Game, after 1878, carved and painted wood, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Herbert Waide Hemphill, Jr. and museum purchase made possible by Ralph Cross Johnson, 1986.65.301
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Gallery Label
Props like this carved head were used until the 1930s at Coney Island's Steeplechase Park for a game known as "African Dodger." Originally, players threw balls at a black man and were rewarded for direct hits. Wooden heads eventually replaced live targets. This grotesquely carved head reflects a dark history of racism and objectification.
Exhibition Label, Smithsonian American Art Museum, 2006
- Title
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Head from a Ball Toss Game
- Manufacturer
- Date
- after 1878
- On View
- Not on view.
- Dimensions
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11 1/2 x 6 7/8 x 8 1/8 in. (29.2 x 17.4 x 20.5 cm)
- Copyright
- Credit Line
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Smithsonian American Art Museum
Gift of Herbert Waide Hemphill, Jr. and museum purchase made possible by Ralph Cross Johnson
- Mediums
- Mediums Description
- carved and painted wood
- Classifications
- Keywords
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- Ethnic – African-American
- Figure male – head
- Object Number
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1986.65.301
- Palette
- Linked Open Data
- Linked Open Data URI
