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LOT 2393
New Guinea Wooden House Mask
PAPUAN, EARLY-MID 20TH CENTURY A.D.
25 1/4 in. (1.55 kg, 64 cm).
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. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceEx Bury St Edmunds, UK, ethnographical collection.
From the property of a late Lincolnshire, UK, gentleman.
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AUCTIONS:
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African Wooden Ceremonial Face Mask
Mossi Tribe, early-mid 20th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £33
Comprising an ellipsoid hollow face with parallel tusks; board of pierced geometric elements. 779 grams, 81 cm
From Burkina Faso, West Africa. Private Hampshire, UK, collection of tribal art; acquired in the 1960s. From the property of a late Lincolnshire, UK, gentleman.
Masks were regarded as the seat of the spirit, but they might also represent the totemic animal of the clan. -
African Brass Kano Bracelet Pair
Okombo Tribe, late 19th-early 20th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £7
Penannular in form with plain white brass body and cone-shaped finials. 92 grams total, 63 mm each
From Nigeria, West Africa. From an old Derby, UK, specialist collection. From the property of a late Lincolnshire, UK, gentleman.
The bracelet is the most common money form in Africa. It served the important monetary functions of portability and wealth display. Variants of this form were accepted virtually everywhere in Africa. -
Central African Brass Smoking Pipe Bowl
Early-mid 20th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £7
Comprising an elongated bowl with rounded rim and bands of integral geometric ornament to the sidewall, drum-shaped foot, angled hoe to accept the drawing pipe. 336 grams, 88 mm
From Cameroon, Cental Africa. From an old Dorset, UK, specialist collection. From the property of a late Lincolnshire, UK, gentleman.
Cameroon had by far the most elaborate smoking culture in Africa and the tobacco pipe was a highly respected item, both as a daily commodity and as an object with solemn ceremonial function.
