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LOT 2362
African Wooden Ceremonial Face Mask
CHOKWE TRIBE, 20TH CENTURY A.D.
11 1/4 in. (525 grams, 28.5 cm).
Carved and decorated with lengths of fiber representing hair, small nose, carved teeth and scarification marks. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceFrom Western Ivory Coast and into Liberia, West Africa.
From the private collection of the late Brian Morley; acquired in the 1950s.
From the property of a late Lincolnshire, UK, gentleman.
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AUCTIONS:
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African Wooden Ceremonial Face Mask
Lega Warega Tribe, early 20th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £208
Teardrop-shaped in plan with two scooped facets, slit eyes; pierced around the edge for attachment. 57 grams, 14.7 cm
From Democratic Republic of the Congo, Central Africa. From the Estate of Dr J Bynon; acquired 22 February 1914. From the property of a late Lincolnshire, UK, gentleman.
Most of Lega masks are sculptures of a human face that are rarely worn over the face and never for purposes of true transformation. The Lega masks can be assigned different uses and meanings depending on the context of the performance. In Bwami ceremonies, masks are attached to different parts of the body, fixed to hat, piled in stacks, hung on fences, held in the hand, dragged on the ground, and occasionally worn on the forehead with the beard draping over the face of the wearer or arranged on a miniature palisade. Participants in most rites display their masks as a group in conjunction with particular dance movements and aphorisms, which vary depending on the context in which they are used. Lega masks differ from those used in many other African masquerades in that while women do not own them, both men and women handle and present them in very similar performances. Masks are among the initiation objects displayed on the grave before being passed to new owners. They are usually passed from an uncle to a nephew. -
African Bi-Metal Slave Bracelet
19th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £20
Penannular in form and D-shaped in section formed from bronze and brass coils, with clubbed beast-head finials. 182 grams, 76 mm
Private collection, London, UK. -
African Wooden 'Akuaba Doll' Fertility Figure
Ashanti Tribe, 20th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £26
Carved from dark-coloured, lightweight wood in traditional form and dyed dark brown; with a large, round head, plain hairstyle, large eyes and typical tribal scarification marks on the forehead. 159 grams, 31.5 cm
From Ghana, West Africa. Ex private collection of Mr.N.J., Leicester, UK. 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.
