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THBPublished 20th C. African Mossi Wood Female Figure
Lot 147a
About Seller
Artemis Gallery
686 S Taylor Ave, Ste 106
Louisville, CO 80027
United States
Selling antiquities, ancient and ethnographic art online since 1993, Artemis Gallery specializes in Classical Antiquities (Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Near Eastern), Asian, Pre-Columbian, African / Tribal / Oceanographic art. Our extensive inventory includes pottery, stone, metal, wood, glass and textil...Read more
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Live Auction in Progress ... Currently on Lot Estimate:
$2,400 - $3,600
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| $300 | $50 |
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| $10,000 | $1,000 |
| $20,000 | $2,500 |
| $50,000 | $5,000 |
| $100,000 | $10,000 |
| $200,000 | $20,000 |
About Auction
Live
By Artemis Gallery
Jul 14, 2022
Set Reminder
2022-07-14 10:00:00
2022-07-14 10:00:00
America/New_York
Bidsquare
Bidsquare : Exceptional Antiquities Ethnographica Fine Art
https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/artemis-gallery/exceptional-antiquities-ethnographica-fine-art-9692
Museum-worthy examples of classical antiquities (Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Near Eastern), Viking, Far East / Asian, Pre-Columbian, African / Tribal, Oceanic, Native American, Spanish Colonial, Fossils, Ancient Jewelry, Fine / Visual Arts, so much more! Artemis Gallery info@artemisgallery.com
Museum-worthy examples of classical antiquities (Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Near Eastern), Viking, Far East / Asian, Pre-Columbian, African / Tribal, Oceanic, Native American, Spanish Colonial, Fossils, Ancient Jewelry, Fine / Visual Arts, so much more! Artemis Gallery info@artemisgallery.com
View Full Catalog (380)
- Lot Description
West Africa, Burkina Faso, northern Yatenga region, Mossi peoples, ca. early 20th century CE. An impressive, hand-carved wood figure of a female known as a Ninana shown standing with knees gently bent and arms to her sides. Enveloped in a rich, espresso-hued patina, the towering figure displays a slender body with an elongated torso, a projecting posterior, and lengthy arms that hang from square shoulders, flanking her drooping breasts, circular navel, and delineated genitalia. Her petite head presents an expressive visage with huge, ovoid eyes, a bulbous nose, and full lips held in a gentle smile. A mohawk known as gyonfo crowns her stylized countenance, sitting just above a pair of giant ears, each featuring a drill hole for suspending ornaments. Incised patterns intended to represent ceremonial scarification adorn her body with circles on her chest and linear designs on her face. Size: 7.5" W x 26" H (19 cm x 66 cm); 27.5" H (69.8 cm) on included custom stand.
An agricultural community, the Mossi inhabit the central plateau region of Burkina Faso and were developed in the 15th and 16th centuries when the local population intermarried with invading horsemen from northern Ghana. Those descended from the invaders, known as Nakomse, assumed political power over the original inhabitants and became the elite of Mossi society. According to the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art, "Figures of this sort were displayed in public at annual sacrifices honoring the ancestors and then stored in the residence of the chief's senior wife. While on view, the figures were dressed with a cloth wrapper covering the lower portions of their bodies in imitation of Mossi women's traditional dress… The use of sculpture parallels the divisions in Mossi society. Masks are employed exclusively by Tengabisi groups to propitiate and manipulate spirits for the good of the community. Figures, usually female, are reserved exclusively for the ruling elite, the Nakomse, as symbols of political power."
Published in "Anthony Quinn's Eye: A Lifetime of Creating and Collecting Art" by Donald Kuspit, Jay Parini, and Tom Roberts (Bristol, Rhode Island: Bristol House Press, 2004), page 159.
Provenance: ex-private collection of actor Anthony Quinn and his wife Katherine, Bristol, Rhode Island, USA acquired prior to 2000
All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.
A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
PLEASE NOTE: Due to recent increases of shipments being seized by Australian & German customs (even for items with pre-UNESCO provenance), we will no longer ship most antiquities and ancient Chinese art to Australia & Germany. For categories of items that are acceptable to ship to Australia or Germany, please contact us directly or work with your local customs brokerage firm.
Display stands not described as included/custom in the item description are for photography purposes only and will not be included with the item upon shipping.
#169272Minor loss to front of mohawk. Stable hairline fissures to back and head. Expected nicks, chips, and abrasions, commensurate with age. Otherwise, excellent with nice patina and liberal remains of pigments.Condition
- Shipping Info
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