Tribal Art

This mask of African art, carved from heavy wood, was acquired by Mr. J. Henry, an expatriate hydrologist, on a mission for the Belgian state in Zaire and Burundi, now deceased, a savvy collector, a cultured personality, and whose patient selection of works testifies to its aesthetic requirement. A large nasal appendage develops in a face with full volumes. Under the rounding of the forehead the circular eyes conferring a hypnotic look are surrounded by different colors, evoking the supernatural mink. The gaping of the mouth reveals holes in which teeth, bone or wood, had once been implanted. Ancient divination mask, from Ituria, which would be named nsembu (De Mahieu, quoted in Biebuyck 1986; 2:234)Red and white pigments appear to have been applied manually to the surface of the object. ...

Ex-collection French African art.
Almond eyes, a thin nasal ridge joining an eyebrow arch in the heart descending laterally to the incised lips of the teeth, and especially the presence of horns, make up the characteristics of this African mask lega Kayamba. This sculpture indicated the stage that its holder had reached within the Bwami, a learning society composed of different ranks, and which were joined by the wives whose spouse had reached the third level, that of the ngandu.
Beautiful light brown patina, residual white clay inlays around the eyes. Long raffia beard. Within the Lega, the Bwami society, open to men and women, organized social and political life. There were up to seven levels of initiation, each associated with emblems. Following their exodus from Uganda in ...

An elaborate structure, in textile-trimmed basketry, where a central cone bearing two circular trays framed by antennae form a strange headdress, distinguishes this African mask from the northern Yaka. The trumpet nose, a phallic symbol, an allusion to fertility, forms a distinctive feature confirming the yaka origin. The circular frame surrounding the face is reduced on this copy to a single visor. Natural pigments, curving, locally flaked.
Introducing songs accompanied the appearance of the African Yaka mask, which incorporates the category of high-ranking masks thanks to its tiered headdress. Their design aroused the creativity of the sculptors whom the chefs rewarded for their talent. Hierarchical and authoritarian, composed of fearsome warriors, Yaka society was ruled by ...

Ex-Belgian African art collection.
Two long, toothed mouths on either side of a rounded volume form this mask wanyugo two-headed senoufo , which belonged to the company wabele , active against witchcraft. Circular eyes are hollowed out only on one side. Small horns are placed at the top. One of the faces still has small nails, which probably allowed to attach accessories such as feathers or raffia. These powerful masks, often an amalgam of different zoomorphic elements, embody hybrid beings, their components can evoke both buffalo, hyena, warthog, antelope. They were preciously kept in a particular square, or in the sacred wood with the magical objects of the Poro. The piece features colorful dotted patterns, patinated and abraded by time. Living in a reserved neighbourhood, the ...

Blade masks in African art.

This mask is made up of two parts. On the one hand, an extremely stylized concave face that divides a crenellated ridge, and on the other hand, a high open blade. Geometric shapes encrusted with white pigment and red ochre are delicately sculpted on the surface. The board is associated with yaaba-soore , a path that the ancestors followed during the creation. The graphic signs symbolize the ritual imperatives required to enjoy divine favors.
It is not surprising to find this type of mask among the Mossi because this people is made up, in the north, by Dogon tribes with various types of blade masks. The mask sirige for example inspired the company wango which officiated with a derivative but similar version.
The masks mossi, personal or ...

Mossi masks, personal masks or lignagers, are an embodiment of tutelary spirits offering their support. They perform at funerals, at the funerals of clan leaders, protect the crops. Genuine altars without their costume, they can receive libations such as mil beer in order to honor the ancestors. Their appearance is now frequent during entertainment shows. Upper Volta, Burkina Faso since independence, is made up of descendants of the Invaders Nakomse, horsemen from Ghana, and the Tengabibisi, descendants of the natives. Among them, farmers and blacksmiths, saaba , used masks, wando, receptacles of the guardian spirits, which often represented the totem animals of the clan. The convex face of this mask indicates a origin from the northeastern Mossi region. Masks from this region have ...

The western Pende live on the banks of the Kwilu, while the oriental settled on the banks of the Kasai river downstream of Tshikapa. The influences of the neighbouring ethnic groups, Mbla, Suku, Wongo, Leele, Kuba and Salempasu, were imprinted on their large tribal art sculpture. Within this diversity the masks Mbuya , realistic, produced every ten years, take on a festive function, and embody different characters, including the chef, the soothsayer and his wife, the prostitute, the possessed, etc. The initiation masks and those of power, the minganji, represent the ancestors and occur successively during the same ceremonies, agricultural festivals, initiation rituals and circumcision mukanda, induction of the chief.
Governs by heads of family, the jogo, to the priestly function, ...

The Mbole are one of the many clans belonging to the Mongo Ethnic Group including the Bolia, Bokote, Bongandu, Ekonda, Mbole, Dengese, Nkutu, Ntomba, Kole, Sengele, Songomeno, Iyasa, Bakutu, Bakusu, Iyadjima (Iyaelima), Boyela and the Batetela. These are divided between the southern province of Ecuador (province) and the northern province of Bandundu (province) in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Tribe of the Mbole group, the Jonga live in the forest south of the Mbolé, hunting and agriculture. Their artistic production, mainly representing ancestors, is poorly documented. All of these groups had similar associations and initiation rituals in which masks were used. This mask, whose protrusion of the eyebrows houses the slanted slits of the eye, has a placid and smiling appearance. ...

Ex collection African art Emile Robyn.

This Mask Mumuye, which is referred to as a female mask or buffalo or monkey, is very similar to that published by Kerchache, Jacques, Jean-Louis Paudrat and Lucien Stephan, ", The African Art" Paris: 1988, pl.126.
Estimated price in the auction room: 5,000 euros.
The mask is composed of two distinct parts: the red face from which comes a long mouth, and on which there are round eyes pierced, finally a marked nasal ridge. The black headdress that finishes the mask ensues. The back of the mask is eroded.

It was Emile's grandfather, Abel Robyn, who began the collection in 1850.It was passed down over three generations. When Abel died in 1895, his son, Jerome Robyn, inherited the collection, which he extended until ...

The absence of a crest indicates here that this mask ("bifwebe") embodies a female spirit or ancestor, although it is still worn by men. Worn with a voluminous raphia collar that concealed the dancer, this mask was usually danced in the company of a zoomorphic mask. In the Luba, white is synonymous with the relationship with the spiritual world, by evoking the moon evoked by the circular form of the object. The almond eyes are hollowed out, an angular nose, the mouth with an orifice moves forward in a quadrangle. The set is engraved with parallel grooves. Velvet patina. These rather rare Luba masks are frequently confused with those of the Songye and their neighbours. The streaks would return to the same symbolism, including that of the zebras. This type of mask appeared at the funerals ...

Heavy African piece of art, facial mask with an ovoid face in which the hairstyle, divided into three curves outlined with brass, is an evidence of its origin Bété, but also southern Gouro.

The medial rib embossed evokes the scarifications in use, the eyelids carefully worked join at the top the ridge of the triangular nose.The philtrum runs to two appendices composed of large circular trays superimposed, forming a great machoîre gaping.These elements are edged with a roll of canvas that a wicker weave keeps it tight, the internal faces are colored with reddish pigment, the surface of this Bété mask is lustrous, the patina is satin, kaolin is applied to the eyes and to the cruciform pattern of a tray. are a tribe established on the left bank of the Sassandra River in the ...

Ex-French African art collection.

This mask with a characteristic, very elongated look has a beautiful bluish patina. On the forehead and the central part of the face are chiseled geometric shapes. From the top stands out a bird's head, probably a calao, with a red beak joining the mask. A small mouth covered with a red patina is projected from the bottom of the face.
The contour of the mask has a rope connected to the perforations present in the wood.

The Markha are organized into societies of structured masks and hierarchical as found in many other ethnic groups. They have an initiation language, a means of communication in the hands of the initiates. The Markha, also known as Warka, live in the north of the Bambara territory and have, therefore, been ...