Tribal Art

African statue of an altar belonging to an anjenu cult very widespread among the animist Idoma as well as among the Igala and the Yoruba of the South. This traditional sculpture is supposed to promote fertility and protect offspring. These statues which benefited from offerings were kept in sanctuaries. Crusty matte patina. Desiccation cracks, erosions.
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The Idoma live at the confluence of the Benué and the Niger. Their art and customs are marked by Igbo, Cross River and Igala influences and it is often difficult to distinguish them from their neighbors. Royal lineage members of their oglinye society, glorifying courage, use masks and crests during funerals and festivities. The Anjenu cult worships the spirits of the bush, who are said to reside in waterways and ...

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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 ...

The rich production of African art among the populations of Cameroonian Grassland is illustrated mainly by wood statuary: commemorative sculptures of kings, queens, princesses and titled servants, as well as the parents of twins. Within the large Bamileke people in western Cameroon, the Bangwa constitute a small kingdom. The influence of the Bamileke on Bangwa statuary is notable by their relatively comparable facial features and morphology. Typical of the Bamileke country, Bangwa statues often represent fertility but also power and combativeness. They are often positioned on either side of the induction chairs during meetings of notables.
Crusty dark patina. Minor cracks.

The Tikar inhabit the western part of central Cameroon which is located within the dense secondary forest of medium altitude, along the Mbam. Within this ecotone, the "tikar plain" (which takes its name from its current occupants) constitutes a depression which leans respectively to the west and to the north to the Mbam massif and to the first foothills of the Adamaoua plateau . From an ethnic point of view, the current boundaries of the Tikar country coincide with those of the Bamun to the west (Foumban), the Mambila to the northwest, the Foulbé to the south, the Babouté to the southeast (Yoko) and small groups individuals (Djenti, etc.) scattered across its borders. The structure of the kingdom is made up of a large chiefdom subdivided into districts: the residences of queens, children ...

The look symbolizing mediumistic abilities, a hallucinogenic root between the teeth, this African statue displays a bust with a receptacle for magical substances. This type of African sculpture sometimes illustrates a proverb. Crusty patina imprinted with kaolin, desiccation cracks.
The Vili, the Lâri, the Sûndi, the Woyo, the Bembé, the Bwende, the Yombé and the Kôngo constituted the Kôngo group, led by the ntotela king. 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 with codified gestures in relation to their vision of the world. The nganga sorcerers, both healers, were in charge of religious activities and mediation towards the God called Nzambi through ...

Anthropomorphic figure of an ancestor, bust, presenting closed eyes with rounded eyelids, thick lips, a large tri-lobed hairstyle extending down the back. A white clay-based patina, called mpemba, covers the whole, like the okuyi masks. This same makeup also covers the dancers during the different rites and ceremonies. This type of punu and lumbu sculpture was intended for magical use, or to sit on a reliquary package in which the object was inserted.
Desiccation cracks and abrasions.
The Punu settled in southwest Gabon and the Congo following conflicts with their Fang neighbors. Punu art objects, imprinted with the Kongo world, are linked to funerary rituals, to the initiation rites of the mukudji society but also to specific magical rites during which the dancers ...

French African art collection.
This rare male figure offers a solid constitution resting on ample digitized feet. Her necklace, imprisoned around a resinous mass, forms an amulet with a protective aim. Patterns depicting cowries are traced. Grayish ritual patina, locally crusty. Cracks, abrasions from use.
Gifts of women, food, festive ceremonies, and honorable status once rewarded dan carvers who were granted this talent during a dream. The latter was the means of communication of Du, invisible spiritual power, with men. Statuary, rare, had a prestigious role with its owner. These are mainly effigies of wives, lü mä, wooden human beings.

The nose pierced with a labret, the face framed by the broad sides of the headdress, this female figure offers a columnar bust enlivened by stretched arms with protruding elbows. The columnar bust on which the breasts and umbilicus point flares out towards the blocks of the feetless legs.
Velvety nuanced brown patina, desiccation cracks.
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, ...

This female figure forms the sculpted incarnation of a edjo , hence the name edjo re akare. With igbeton high-ranking women, she also has jewelry, necklaces and scarifications. The surface remains partially encrusted with white clay and red pigments, the base on which the piece rests is fragmented. Cracks and gaps located on the lower part.
The Urhobos , living near the northwest of the Niger Delta River, form the main ethnic group of the Delta State among the 36 states of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. They speak Urhobo, a language of the Niger-Congo group. Together with the Isoko whose art is close, they are collectively known as Sobo . Their large sculptures depicting the spirits of nature, edjo , or those depicting the founding ancestors of the clan, to whom sacrifices were ...

Figure of an ancestor represented naked, kneeling on a circular flat surface. The head offers a chiseled crest, the face has slanted eyes accentuating the arrow shape of the nose. Pursed lips give a determined and concentrated physiognomy. Long, slender limbs are adorned with bracelets, the body marked with fine scarified motifs, the buttocks rest on very long feet.
Interesting speckled red ochre, blackish patina and light pigments.
Desication cracks.
Carved for the most part on order placed by a family, Dogon statues can also be the object of worship on the part of the whole community when they commemorate, for example, the foundation of the village. However, their functions remain little known. Alongside Islam, Dogon religious rites are organized around four main cults: ...

A symbol of power, this African statue features a founding ancestor and mythical hero, Chibinda Ilunga, wearing the chipangula, intended for chiefs. He holds a ritual horn and a staff. The chiefs had a major function in the propitiation rites intended for hunting and the fertility of women. Applications of castor oil and coloring plant decoctions were generally administered to the surface.
Erosions.

Peacefully settled in eastern Angola until the 16th century, the Chokwé were then subject to the Lunda empire from which they inherited a new hierarchical system and the sacredness of power. Three centuries later, they ended up seizing the capital of the Lunda weakened by internal conflicts, thus contributing to the dismantling of the kingdom. The Chokwé did not have ...

The African statues associated with the Byeri cult embody the ancestor of the clan acting as "guardians" of reliquaries.
Figured seated, wrists and shoulders encircled by wicker vines crossed behind the back , the subject offers classically prominent musculature. A fragment of a ritual mirror lines the bottom of a cup placed on the bust. Hollowed pupils indicate a trance state.
Heterogeneous oiled patina, abrasions, restoration and cracks from use.

Among the Fang of Cameroon and Gabon, each family has a "Byeri", or reliquary box, in which the bones of the ancestors are kept. These boxes were guarded by the oldest man in the village, the “esa”. The reliquary boxes were topped with a statue or head which acted as guardian of the “byeri” boxes. These were kept in ...

This sculpture of African art Dogon, with a surreal aspect, carved in wood, is made up of an assembly of heads, separating into branches. One of the elements is a long neck bearing an ancestor's face. Golden beige grainy patina. Desication cracks.

These statues, sometimes embodying the nyama of the deceased, are placed on ancestor altars and take part in various rituals, including those during sowing and harvesting periods. Alongside Islam, Dogon religious rites are organized around four main cults: the Lébé, relating to fertility, under the spiritual authority of the Hogon, the Wagem, ancestor worship under the authority of the patriarch, the Binou invoking the spirit world and led by the priest of the Binou, and the society of masks concerning the funeral.
According to ...

Ex-French African artcollection.
Within the wide diversity of nkisi sculptures to which multiple virtues were attributed, this African maternity in figurative style, image of the protective ancestor of the clan, offers an abundance of very finely chiseled details. This type of female statue was accompanied by its male counterpart named Mabyaala.
Burgundy brown satin patina. Minor erosions and desiccation cracks.
The Vili, the Lâri, the Sûndi, the Woyo, the Bembé, the Bwende, the Yombé and the Kôngo formed the Kôngo group, led by king ntotela . With the same beliefs and traditions, they produced statuary with codified gestures in relation to their vision of the world.
Ref. : "Africa, the art of a continent" ed. Prestel (p.247)

Rarely presented in such a posture, the mbole sculpture here depicts a seated subject, hands clasped in prayer. Oiled black patina, erosions and drying cracks, restorations (reptile skin).
The province of Lualaba had several close ethnic groups with similar associations. The Mbole are known for their statues embodying, according to D. Biebuck, hanged men, called ofika. The lilwa, an association with dogmatic initiation rites, had the custom of judging and condemning to hanging those guilty of infractions of the imposed rules. These offenses ranged from murder to adultery to breaking the secret surrounding the lilwa. Dishonored, the bodies of the condemned received no funeral and were buried in the forest. It was during the end of initiation ceremonies, presided over by a notable ...

African statue altar part of a cult supposed to promote fertility and protect descendants, very widespread not only among the animist Idoma, but also among the Igala and the Yoruba of the South. These statues which benefited from offerings were kept in sanctuaries. Matte crusty patina. Erosions.
The Idoma live at the confluence of the Benué and the Niger. Numbering 500,000, they are farmers and traders. There are Igbo, Cross River and Igala influences in their art and customs and it is often difficult to distinguish them from their neighbors. Royal lineage members of their oglinye society, glorifying courage, use masks and crests during funerals and festivities. They also produced fertility statues with whitened faces displaying incised teeth. Janiform crests generally appear at ...

Very expressive sculpture of a small, stocky character, represented with hands united under the chin, with characteristics also kwésé, according to the hatching of the face. Orifices have been pierced on either side of the head for possible suspension, sex for ritual purposes. Grainy velvety patina, partially abraded, desication cracks.
The Kwésé are established among other tribes such as the Mbala and the Hungaan, along the banks of the Kwango River in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Their sculpture is inspired by that of their neighbors and sometimes made by the Mbalas at the request of the Kwese.
The headdress shares great similarities with the mukote headdress which, among the Western Pende with whom the Mbala shared mukanda circumcision rituals, became a symbol of ...

Ex-collection of French African tribal art.
This African sculpture called "ugonachonma" depicts a young nubile woman. It included staging in village squares during dry season entertainment ceremonies. These figures are specific to village age groups in the north central Igbo region, around Onitsha and Awka. Women have specific criteria of Igbo beauty, including uli tattoos. Eroded matte patina, discreet polychrome highlights, drying cracks and gaps.
br>The Igbo worship a considerable number of deities known as alusi, or agbara, considered to be the descendants of Chuku, or Chukwu, and as such constitute intermediaries to whom sacrifices such as kola nuts, money, kaolin, are granted in order to enjoy their favors. These sculptures produced in several regions range from around ...

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 ...

The Fang of the region extending from Yaoundé in Cameroon to Ogooué in Gabon strongly influenced the Mabea of southern Cameroon. The latter have absorbed a large part of their rites such as the so and the ngil. The reliquary statues, sculpted by the Mabea, are however generally larger than those of the Fang and adorned with various finery. The hairstyle is also very distinct, divided into two shells, unlike the Fang crest. This figure of a female ancestor is treated according to the conventions in use, hands resting on the thighs. Its jewelry represents the copper torques and bracelets worn by dignitaries. Minor cracks. Heterogeneous, slightly grainy patina.
Among the Fang of Cameroon and Gabon, each family has a “Byeri”, or reliquary box, in which the bones of the ancestors ...

African figure rising in a narrow column punctuated by surfaces in circular trays. The subject with a face offering low relief is seated, an object on his knees. Light dry patina, dark residues of ritual practices, erosions.
Carved for the most part to order placed by a family, the Dogon statues can also be the object of worship on the part of the whole community when they commemorate, for example, the foundation of the village. However, their functions remain little known. Alongside Islam, Dogon religious rites are organized around four main cults: the Lébé, relating to fertility, under the spiritual authority of the Hogon, the Wagem, ancestor worship under the authority of the patriarch, the Binou invoking the spirit world and led by the priest of the Binou, and the society of ...