Each with exaggerated discoid head, squat body with stub arms, standing on a conical base. 985 grams total, 36-36.5 cm



From Ghana, West Africa. Ex private Cheshire, UK, collection. From the property of a late Lincolnshire, UK, gentleman.

Among the Ashanti people in Ghana, women hoping for offspring carry these ‘Akuaba dolls’ in their clothes. Traditionally, these ‘Akuaba’ have a large, round, flat head that is reminiscent of its origin as a representation of the moon goddess, which is associated with fertility. Once the ‘Akuaba’ figure has fulfilled its purpose, the mother of the desired child places it on her domestic altar, where it is worshipped in a shrine, or she passes it on to the next generation.

Carved as an elongated face with feather headdress, inlaid with cowrie shells and with hog tusks to the nose; grip handle in front of the mouth. 1.55 kg, 64 cm



Ex Bury St Edmunds, UK, ethnographical collection. From the property of a late Lincolnshire, UK, gentleman.

Including a figure using a hoe, another carrying a basket on her head and other types. 150 grams total, 49-64 mm



From an old Oxford, UK, collection. From the property of a late Lincolnshire, UK, gentleman.

Carved in a standing pose with a bald head, legs slightly bent, hands resting on the abdomen and an elongated neck supporting a face with bulging eyes. 425 grams, 35.8 cm



From Burkina Faso, West Africa. From a Glasgow ethnographical collection; formed 1940s-1950s. From the property of a late Lincolnshire, UK, gentleman.

Hollow-formed carved mask with heavy brow, small square eye-holes flanking a triangular-section nose, narrow lower face with tassels. 862 grams, 34.5 cm



From Mali, Guinea and Burkina Faso, West Africa. Private Hampshire, UK, collection of tribal art; acquired in the 1960s. From the property of a late Lincolnshire, UK, gentleman.

The Marka are a Mande subgroup. This ethnic group is independent from the Bambara but their styles show a strong Bambara influence. The Marka are famous for their masks and puppets. Similar to Bambara's ntomo society masks, Marka masks are generally carved with horns, comb or crest on top of the head, but unlike Bambara masks they are often covered with metal sheeting.

A carved mask with crested horns and decorated in tones of white, red and blue. 620 grams, 39.4 cm



From Ivory Coast, West Africa. From an old Derby, UK, collection. From the property of a late Lincolnshire, UK, gentleman.

The Baule people is one of the largest ethnic groups in the Côte d'Ivoire. Wooden masks allow a closer contact with the supernatural world and correspond to several types of dances: the gba gba, the bonu amuen, the mblo and the goli. They never represent the ancestors and are always worn by men.

Each discoid in plan and lentoid in section with central perforation and incised geometric ornament. 320 grams total, 50-54 mm



Ex private Oxford ethnographical collection. From the property of a late Lincolnshire, UK, gentleman.

A highly patterned round bronze body with plain disc shaped ends, radiating studs to the outer edge. 59 grams, 74 mm



From Benin, West Africa. Ex Surrey, UK, ethnographical collection. From the property of a late Lincolnshire, UK, gentleman.

Lentoid in section and linguiform in profile with fine polished surface. 457 grams, 18.5 cm



Acquired on the UK art market in the 1980s. From an East Anglian private collection.

A carved tribal stool, an oval seat decorated with beads supported by two female figures displaying scarification, on a plano-convex base. 2.55 kg, 41 cm high



From Republic of Benin, West Africa. From the collection of the late Professor R M Hicks, OBE. From the property of a late Lincolnshire, UK, gentleman.

A hand-carved standing female figure with hands placed by the side and scarification to the face, breasts and stomach. 600 grams, 44.5 cm



From Southwest Nigeria, West Africa. From an old Bristol, UK, ethnographical collection. From the property of a late Lincolnshire, UK, gentleman.

Human figures are represented in a fundamentally naturalistic way, except for bulging eyes; flat, protruding, and usually parallel lips; and stylised ears. Within the basic canon of Yoruba sculpture, many local styles can be distinguished, down to the hand of the individual artist.

A hand-carved female figure standing on a base with a columnar body, displaying scarification to the front and side of the face. 960 grams, 36.3 cm



From Democratic Republic of the Congo, Central Africa. From an old Bristol, UK, ethnographical collection. From the property of a late Lincolnshire, UK, gentleman.