1960s. Height 39,0 cm; weight 1.152 grams (including stand). Clear evidence of ritual use. These ritual phalluses were placed on household altars or directly into the ground to stimulate crop growth. Legba is a very important figure in the Fon and Ewe religions traditionally practiced in Benin and Togo. He is considered...
Carved hard wood. Cm. 28,0 high x cm. 20,5 width x cm 20,5 depth (11.02" x 8.07" x 8.07"); grams 1256,0 (44.30 oz.). The 'noo' masks are worn by healers. A fine wooden helmet surmounted by a stylized representation of bird; in the back "the mythical bull that first revealed his secret...
Carved wood, pigment. Cm. 23,0 high x cm. 7,7 width (9.06" x 3.03"); grams 341,7 (12.05 oz.). Throughout history the phenomenon of twins has always been the subject of great curiosity and charm, such as surprising and uncontrollable force of nature, stimulating particular actions and behaviors. In Togo and Bènin, if one...
Wood, mineral pigments cm. 32,5 high x cm. 18,0 width (12.80″ x 7.09″); grams 262,0 (9.24 oz.). Former Belgian collection. This rafined mask come from clans living in the north of the Ituri region. The only detail on the protruding mouth is a crenellation representing a dentition; this decoration evokes the...
Carved wood, pigment. Cm. 10,0 high x cm. 5,5 width (3.94" x 2.17"); grams 31,7 (1.12 oz.). These ancestor figures are preserved and revered inside the private home. The Senufo people are an ethnolinguistic group of West Africa. They consist of several subgroups that live in a region that crosses the northern...
Wood. Cm. 84,5 high. Weight 4 kg. The unusual large size gives this example an exceptional display presence. The prominent crest at the top of the head derives from a traditional women's coiffure. The scarification lines which border the face, are also Mossi features, both in life and in sculpture. The...
Carved wood, pigment. Cm. 53,0 high x cm. 22,0 width (20.87" x 8.66"). The mask has been professionally restored in the upper part. The mask is solid and there are no visible traces of the restoration. Zaouli is a traditional dance of the Guro people of central Ivory Coast. The Zaouli mask,...
Early to mid 20th century. Wood. Cm. 27,7 high x (10.90″); Grams 127,90 (4.51 oz). A fine Ibeji with a domed cap, standing on an almost square base, big feet, the hands resting flat against the thighs, a bracelet on each wrist, tapering protruding belly, small breasts, an oval head with...
Wood, paint. The mask is cm. 49,0 high xcm. 44,0 width x cm 41,0 depth (19.29" x 17.32" x 16.14"); grams 4.418,0 (9.74 oz.). Through a system of threads, the figures above the mask move like puppets. Gelede The Gelede spectacle of the Yoruba is a public display by colorful masks which...
Iron, cm. 67,0 high (26.38"). Grams 2.565,0 (90.48 oz.). The Mumuye figures tend to be elongated ranging in size from 20 to 160 cm. The legs are usually angular, and ribbon-like arms wrap around the torso with elbows clearly marked. The Mumuye occasionally used their figures for divination and healing, as did...
