African Ashanti Bronze Snake Gold Weight

Comprising three kilted figures, each carrying a basket, in various poses. 105 grams total, 53-56 mm



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

Deltoid in plan and with slight midrib, shank with knop finial for attachment. 21 grams, 98 mm



From Côte d'Ivoire, West Africa. From an old Derby, UK, specialist collection. From the property of a late Lincolnshire, UK, gentleman.

Lobi arts also include a wide variety of small human and animal images, implements, and more abstract symbols in copper alloy and iron. Some of these are worn as jewelry and some appear on shrines.

Carved with scarification panels to the cheeks and forehead, protruding mouth with teeth, flat nose and a neck panel below the chin. 560 grams, 37.5 cm



From Democratic Republic of the Congo, Central Africa. From the collection of the late Professor R M Hicks, OBE. From the property of a late Lincolnshire, UK, gentleman.

Pende masks are among the most dramatic works of all African art. There are two styles: the western one of the Kwilu with its mbuya mask characterized by a somber, gloomy expression, and the Kasai style that is more geometric and colorful. The Kwilu Pende are especially well known for their masks that were originally used for circumcision ceremonies but later became accessories for a type of popular theater. The minganji, or masks of power, represent the ancestors; the mbuya, or village masks, represent human types, such as the chief, the diviner, the epileptic with a twisted mouth, the madman or man in a trance, the widow, the lover, or the executioner.