Tribal Art

African art Dogon
Witness to the bronze sculpture of the Dogons, this subject offers a characteristic slender morphology. The character illustrates a protective ancestor, or a mythical being of Dogon cosmogony. Pretty locally ocher light green patina.
The Dogon are a people renowned for their cosmogony, their myths and legends, living in the south-west of the bend of the Niger in the Mopti region of Mali and part of the north of the The villages are often perched on top of the scree on the side of the hills, according to a unique architecture. The history of Dogon migrations and settlements (about ten main groups, about fifteen different languages) involves several hypotheses. For some historians, the Dogon would have fled from an area west of their current location, ...

Ibeji, substitute images in African art
This effigy reflects African Yoruba sculpture. Anointing residues remain locally crystallized.
Shiny mahogany patina, indigo highlights.
In the language of the Yoruba people, ibeji means twin: ibi for born and eji for two< /i>. They represent the figure of a deceased twin. This ibedji is then treated as the missing child would have been. It is the mother who must take care of him; she can wash and feed him regularly. If she dies, the remaining twin takes over.
It also happened that a man had ibeji carved for his wife in order to encourage pregnancy, the object becoming a support for fertility. Support for the soul of the twin, the ibeji influences the life of the family, becoming a source of benefits for his parents, the latter ...

French African art collection.
Carved in dense wood according to aesthetic criteria allowing to "capture" the spirit to which the medium or the healer is addressing, the female subject offers the sumptuous anatomy of the statues Nkpasopi . The hairstyle is organized in many chignons enhancing the haughty bearing of the head. This type of statues were evaluated according to the effectiveness of the rites staging them. In most cases, these statues served as mediators between the healers and the spirits that took hold of them, and they are still used today. Desication erosions and cracks. Glossy black patina. The lagoon populations of eastern Côte d'Ivoire mainly include the Attié, Akyé, Ebrié and Abouré. Their sculptures offer many similarities. These kingdoms had the first commercial ...

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This sculpture with a balanced morphology has a thick greasy patina. The traditional ethnic scarification marks can be seen on the surface. These tribal marks were made on the abdomen after the birth of the first child.
Good condition despite some desiccation cracks.
This type of figure also topped karan-wemba masks. These statues have become rarer due to the conversions of their owners to Islam. The patina usually comes from renewed applications of shea butter. Mossi chiefs have prestigious statues gathered in the house of ancestral spirits, and those of diviners, representing ancestors, have a sacrificial patina.
Upper Volta, Burkina Faso since independence, is composed of the descendants of the invaders, horsemen who came from Ghana in the ...

French African Tribal Art Collection.
Anthropo-zoomorphic figure representing a slender subject, endowed with feminine attributes, established in an unconventional posture and whose narrow face extended by a pointed jaw would recall certain Dogon animal masks associated with monkeys or even crocodiles (dia). Dark, lumpy, irregular patina. Desication cracks.
Carved for the most part on order placed by a family, the Dogon statues can also be the object of worship on the part of the whole community. However, their functions remain little known. More than eighty types of Dogon masks have been listed, the majority used by circumcised initiates of the Awa society, during funeral ceremonies. The Ko mask of the Dogon is one of three types of monkey masks: Dege represents a baboon ...

Protective sculpture of lineage or family, whose glazed abdomen conceals a magical charge. The glazed gaze refers to mediumistic abilities. Figure sometimes illustrating a proverb, the character is represented here perched on zoomorphic figures emblematic of specific clans. Desication cracks, crusty light gray patina.
The Vili, the Lâri, the Sûndi, the Woyo, the Bembe, the Bwende, the Yombé and the Kôngo constituted the Kôngo group, led by King ntotela. Their kingdom reached its peak in the 16th century with the trade in ivory, copper and the slave trade. With the same beliefs and traditions, they produced a statuary endowed with a codified gesture in relation to their vision of the world. The nganga sorcerers, both healers, were in charge of religious activities and ...

Refinement of Cameroonian Grassland sculptures.
This statuette of an ancestor carved in wood, characterizing the African tribal art of the Grassland regions, was covered with a canvas of rabane then encrusted with imported multicolored beads. The subject presents a cup with a lid. Among the Bamiléké as in other ethnic groups, works of art bear witness to the place of their owner in society. Thus, the materials and shapes of objects varied according to social status. Located in the border region of Nigeria, the North West province of Cameroon, the Grassland is made up of several ethnic groups: Tikar, Anyang, Widekum, Chamba, Bamoun and Bamileke . Several centralized chiefdoms, or kingdoms, based on customary associations, secret societies, are organized around the Fon who would have ...

Slender face flanked by huge rectangular earrings, inviting the gaze towards the shoulders draping the columnar bust like a shawl. The asymmetry of long bent arms offers the illusion of dynamics. The skirted hips overhang the parallel planes of notched legs. Erosions and cracks. Glossy black patina.
The statuary emanating from the northwestern region of the middle Benoué, from the Kona Jukun, to the Mumuye and up to the Wurkun populations is distinguished by a relative absence of ornamentation and a refined stylization. The 100,000 Adamawa language speakers form a group called Mumuye and are grouped into villages, dola, divided into two groups: those of fire (tjokwa) relating to blood and the color red, guardians of the Vabong cult, from among whom are elected the heads,and ...

Featuring an asexual being, this sculpture presents a standing figure, with a straight back, hands resting on a voluminous abdomen. The globular head is highlighted by thin asymmetrical ears, while the arches are cut straight, housing pupils in which the beads are absent. The narrow chin forms a small protrusion dominating a fleshy neck. The uns polished surface shows the sculptor's herminette strokes. Oiled dark patina.
This statue comes from the northeastern region of Tanzania, bordering Kenya, opposite the Indian Ocean, where the Paré, Shamba, Zigua, and Mbugu tribes live. A relative homogeneity characterizes the productions of these groups, recalling some of the Malagasy and Bataks with whom, through maritime trade, contact could once have been established. This piece was ...

French African Tribal Art Collection.
Exceptional African animal figure Nkisi (pl. mankishi ), of the "koso" type, carrying a glazed cavity concealing the bishimba magic charge. The power of the fetish was further accentuated by the presence of various accessories, such as nails, cords, bones or metal. Among the Kongo, the dog, renowned for its knowledge of the supernatural world, its flair and its vision, played the role of mediator between the living and the dead. The Vili, the Lâri, the Sûndi, the Woyo, the Bembe, the Bwende, the Yombé and the Kôngo formed the Kôngo group, led by King Ntotela. Their kingdom reached its peak in the 16th century with the trade in ivory, copper and the slave trade. With the same beliefs and traditions, they produced statuary endowed with codified ...

Old statue depicting a female subject with slender shapes, a vase crowning the head with fine features. The slender arms, arched around the narrow bust, extend into fingered hands framing the subtle bulge of the abdomen. Between the reduced breasts runs an adornment of cowries symbolizing fertility. Residues encrusted with kaolin libations. Desication erosions and cracks.
About sixty ethnic groups populate Côte d'Ivoire, including the Baoulé, in the center, Akans from Ghana. Two types of statues are produced by the Baoulé, Baulé, in the ritual context: The Waka-Sona statues, "being of wood" in baoulé, evoke a seated oussou, being of the earth. They are one of a type of statues intended to be used as medium tools by Komian soothsayers, the latter being selected by asye usu spirits ...

Rare work, strange object of curiosity offering two heads on a hollowed bust around a miniature subject. This African statue Nkisi, nkishi (pl. mankishi) of the Songye is pierced with numerous nails. Different metals adorn the faces reminiscent of kifwebe masks. Thick black patina, locally grainy.
The Nkisi plays the role of mediator between god and men, responsible, among the Songye, for protecting against various evils. The large specimens are the collective property of an entire village, and the smaller figures belong to an individual or a family. In the 16th century, the Songyes migrated from the Shaba region to settle on the left bank of the Lualaba. Their society is organized in a patriarchal way. Their history is inseparable from that of the Luba, to whom they are ...

This sculpted figure depicts a naked woman, her hair done according to Mangbetu and Zande custom, braided hair gathered in a bun. Among the Mangbetu, this hairstyle enhanced the elongation of the skull, which compression of the head from an early age gradually deformed.
Orange-brown patina, abrasions and losses.
The ancients call beli the anthropomorphic figures embodying ancestors, stored out of sight, and comparable to those belonging to their secret society nebeli. The Mangebetu kingdom in northern Congo produced architectural works that impressed European visitors in the 19th century. Their furniture, weapons, ornaments and statuary were imbued with a rare aesthetic quality. The ethnologist G.A. Schweinfurth in 1870 described its symmetry and refinement, while at the ...

Sculpted following the death of a notable in order to prolong his authority, placed in the men's meeting room, the figure of the ekpu ancestor was the subject of regular sacrifices in the hope of protecting the community. The Oron are established in the Cross River region, alongside the Ibibio. The recurring elements of the oron sculptures are a beard, a hat or a circular headdress, dignitary attributes. The narrow bust gradually widens towards a swollen, cylindrical abdomen, stocky legs. Desication cracks, erosions.

This Lobi African statuette "Bateba forms a picket top. Cut with efficiency, it represents a rectilinear subject, receptacle of a spirit, whose spherical head offers salient features. Ocher brown patina.
Among the Lobi of Burkina Faso, these spirits transmit to the soothsayers the laws that the followers must follow to receive their protection.
Sculptures in wood or copper named Bateba (of any size, figurative or abstract), adopt different attitudes that symbolize the particular power or talent that the spirit uses to protect its owners. These figurines are placed on the tombs, in a dark corner of the owners' house, along with other sculptures embodying different spirits.
Source: "Sculptures of the Three Voltas" Massa and Lauret .

Equipped with an anthropomorphic cap reproducing the shape of traditional dolls, the container is fitted with a carrying strap.

The Zaramo and the tribes that surround them, such as the Kwéré, designed dolls generally associated with fertility, but to which other virtues would be attributed. Its primary role is played during the period of confinement of the young initiate Zaramo. The novice will behave towards the object as with a child, and will dance with it during the closing ceremonies of the initiation. In case the young woman does not conceive, she will adopt the "child". Among the Zaramo and the Kwéré, this sculpted motif is taken up on the top of canes, decorates ritual objects and even appears on burial posts.

African Dogon art.
Male figure with columnar bust standing on bent legs. Short, small arms frame the face. Grainy matte surface, cracks.
The African tribal statues of the Dogon may also be the object of worship by the entire community when they commemorate, for example, the founding of the village. These statues, sometimes embodying the nyama of the deceased, are placed on ancestor altars and participate in various rituals including those of the seed and harvest periods. Their functions, however, remain little known. The figures with raised arms always symbolized a prayer to Amma for the granting of the rain that is essential to all life, and it could also be a gesture of contrition following the violation of a law that led to a drought. The southern part of the plateau ...

Collection African tribal art Belgian.
African figure carved Nkisi, nkishi (pl. mankishi) desacralized, acquired in 1950 and transmitted by succession. The magic charge bishimba and the various addendums, metal, trinkets, etc... supposed to reinforce the power of the fetish are absent.
Glossy dark patina. Desication cracks, erosions.

These protective fetishes for homes are among the most popular in Africa. The Nkisi plays the role of mediator between gods and men. The large specimens are the collective property of an entire village, the more modest figures reserved for individual or family use.

Rare figures of young couple dan, engraved with multiple scarifications, and wearing braids gathered in shells falling in 'dreadlocks' on both sides of the face. A very subtle differentiation of the faces marks the genre. Beautiful old patina deeply encrusted with kaolin. Desication cracks, slight erosions.
As gifts of women, food, festive ceremonies and honorable status once rewarded the dan sculptors to whom this talent was granted during a dream. The latter was the means of communication of Du, invisible spiritual power, with men. Statuary, rare, played a prestigious role with its holder. These are mainly effigies of wives, la m , wooden human beings. These are not incarnations of spirits or effigies of ancestors, but prestigious figures representing living people, often ...

Always represented sitting on a stool, this Bambara statue, with its piercing gaze, has a high "shell-shaped" chest. The hands placed in front form large flat areas, framing a narrow columnar bust. Beautiful golden brown patina alternating satin and velvety areas. Abrasions. Cracks and missing parts.
These female statues , or Bambara queens , Guandoudou , Gwandusu associated with fertility and fecundity, were surrounded by statues representing their servants, presenting offering cups or supporting their chest. The blacksmiths of the Dyo society, Djo or Do , used them every seven years during the fertility ritual. Infertile women then had to sacrifice a bird, wash the figures with a peanut soap, segue, then anoint them with shea oil. They also adorned them with necklaces to ...

Deformity in African tribal art .
Better known than the anthropomorphic sculptures of the Pende, the Mbangu "disease" masks, known as " nosomorphic" masks, illustrate, by their deformed features, the patient in an epileptic seizure or the result of a facial paralysis caused by witchcraft rituals.
In many tribal cultures, epilepsy would be perceived as a divine seal on an individual able to communicate in this way with the spiritual world.
In addition to his face with the features of the Mbangu mask, the figure is flanked by a bulbous goiter and his attitude indicates abdominal pain. Raffia belts and an anklet made of seeds emphasize the sculpture. Crusty patina.
The Pende Westerners live on the banks of the Kwilu, while the Easterners have settled ...