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THBDr. George Harley African Mask
About Seller
PO Box 2135
Asheville, NC 28802
United States
Based in Asheville, North Carolina, Brunk Auctions has been conducting sales of fine and decorative arts for over 30 years. Auctions are held in our North Carolina sale room but attracts a global audience. Founded by Robert Brunk in 1983, the auctions became well known for their integrity and profes...Read more
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About Auction
LiveOct 16, 2024
Including fine art, furniture, silver, maritime art, Native American art, & decorative arts including early ceramics and folk art; a rare Angel Gabriel weathervane; important Kentucky and North Carolina silver; Southern fine art by Hutty, Verner, and a Tennessee scene by James Hope; Charleston and other Southern furniture; American art including works by Sanford Gifford, George de Forest Brush, Theodore Butler, Ernest Lawson, two works by Andrew Wyeth, and others from the collection of Barbara Novak; and important Native American art featuring a Blackfoot war shirt and a Santo Domingo shield. Brunk Auctions support@brunkauctions.com
View Full Catalog (387)
- Lot Description
early/20th century, Liberia/Ivory Coast, carved wood of unknown origin, darkened surface on front, with holes around edges, eye holes, inscribed "112" on the inside, 10 x 7 x 4 in.
Provenance: Richard Blackwell Smith, Washington, D. C.; by descent to Private Collection, Durham, North Carolina
Note: This mask is one of the legendary group collected by Dr. George Harley (1894-1966), an anthropologist and medical missionary to Liberia in the early to mid-20th century. Dr. Harley's early work regarding traditional Liberian tribes is perhaps the most extensive research done on these tribes. He is most known for the over 1,000 masks he collected during his time there, many of which can be found in museum collections, including the Cleveland Musuem of Art and the Peabody Museum of Archeology and Ethnology. The holes surrounding the edges of this mask are for attaching fibers and beads to make hair or a beard and attaching capes and headdresses The delicate carvings along the face likely represent the ritual scarification practiced at the time. This particular mask was given to Blackwell Smith, relative of the current owner, by Dr. Harley in 1947.
This lot is accompanied by three publications: "Masks as Agents of Social Control in Northeast Liberia" by George. W. Harley, 1950.
"Notes on the Poro in Liberia" by George W. Harley, 1941.
"The Harley Masks of Northeast Liberia" by Louis T. Wells, Jr., 1977.
This lot is also accompanied by an extensive collection of historic black and white photos of Liberia at the time, taken by Dr, Harley and others, an example of which can be seen here.
- Provenance
Richard Blackwell Smith, Washington, D. C.; by descent to Private Collection, Durham, North Carolina
- Shipping Info
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Purchased items will be available for pick up or shipping from our Asheville, North Carolina auction facility within ten business days of the auction will be assessed a storage fee of $5.00 per day, per item. Purchaser agrees that packing and shipping is done at the purchaser's risk and that the purchaser will pay in advance all packing expenses, materials, carrier fees and insurance charges. At our discretion, items will either be packed by an agent such as a packaging store or Brunk Auctions. Please allow two weeks for shipping after payment is received. Shipment of large items is the responsibility of the purchaser. We are happy to provide names of carriers and shippers if a purchaser so requests. Brunk Auctions will have no liability for any loss or damage to shipped items.
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- Condition
overall patination commensurate with age and use, vertical crack running the length of the mask, apparently repaired, slight wear along the repair
