Vintage and Antique Tribal Art and Artifacts from The Americas.   Home

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A pair of Mitsogo shrine figures

Catalogue: Vintage Arts: Regional Art: African: Sculpture: Pre 1960   item# 955550 (stock# M313 & M314)

A pair of Mitsogo shrine figures
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michael cichon tribal arts
941.224.0440


Price on request 

The Mitsogo have preserved their traditions of 'bwiti', connected with commemoration, divination, and initiations, more fully than any other people in present day Gabon. Cult shrines, called 'ebandza' were the center of the mainly nocturnal activities for each village. Figures, like this painted, male and female matched pair, were symbolically placed into the shrine, appropriately divided into a male (right) and female (left) half. Sacred, figurative shrine sculptures, some o ...click for details


A fine Mossi antelope headpiece

Catalogue: Vintage Arts: Regional Art: African: Sculpture: Pre 1940   item# 954519 (stock# M64992)

A fine Mossi antelope headpiece
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michael cichon tribal arts
941.224.0440


$4,500.00 

For the Mossi, masks were used primarily during funerals. This graceful animal head cap (zazaido) from the Mossi people shows the distinct features of a small antelope (duiker). The blackened, pronounced crest between the horns possibly alludes to the coiffure of a Fulani woman or to a rooster's feathered head. The mask headpiece is painted with organic pigments in the classic black, red, and white color triad seen on much West and Central African sculpture. The natural materials used for th ...click for details


A rare earthenware Nok pendant figure

Catalogue: Antiques: Regional Art: African: Sculpture: Pre AD 1000   item# 953750 (stock# N319673b)

A rare earthenware Nok pendant figure
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michael cichon tribal arts
941.224.0440


$2,950.00 

An exquisitely modeled male figure in a kneeling position wearing a large collar, belt, and cuffs. A close-fitting cap or coiffure shrouds his head. The figure appears to wear a thick and striated, possibly padded, outfit which seems to bundle the diminutive body. His face is finely rendered in a classic manner, as seen on much larger Nok terracottas. This amulet has been pierced for stringing under one armpit. The figure's right arm and hand are missing, most likely for quite sometime, as ...click for details


An Eastern Sepik River Basin spear thrower

Catalogue: Vintage Arts: Regional Art: Oceanic: Artifacts: Pre 1950   item# 953744 (stock# S212)

An Eastern Sepik River Basin spear thrower
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michael cichon tribal arts
941.224.0440


$700.00 

A fine, old example made from a section of rattan with a wooden, composite zoomorphic carving attached to the shaft. The mythological creature is vaguely saurian, somewhat avian in appearance. Surface is darkened and slightly encrusted overall. Original fiber bindings intact. 29"L. From Papua New Guinea. Early-mid 20th century.


A fine Dogon 'Satimbe' mask

Catalogue: Vintage Arts: Regional Art: African: Sculpture: Pre 1960   item# 950993 (stock# D653003)

A fine Dogon 'Satimbe' mask
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michael cichon tribal arts
941.224.0440


$8,500.00 

This complex mask form represents a 'yasigine,' a specific type of Dogon woman. Among the Dogon of Mali, West Africa, the name 'Satimbe' means "sister on the head." The image of a woman on these masks represents the few female members of the 'Awa Society,' which is responsible for all masquerades performed. It is believed these legendary women of origin stories first discovered mask-making in primordial times, before it became an exclusively male privilege. In c ...click for details


A Middle Sepik River figurative slit drum (garamut)

Catalogue: Vintage Arts: Regional Art: Oceanic: Sculpture: Pre 1940   item# 949965 (stock# NG9932a)

A Middle Sepik River figurative slit drum (garamut)
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michael cichon tribal arts
941.224.0440


$3,500.00 

The various peoples of the Sepik River Basin in Papua New Guinea use drums to accompany their ritual events. Large slit gongs, or slit drums, like this example made by the Iatmul peoples, were usually kept from public view. Their use was mainly for long-distance communication, like a telegraph, among people speaking the same language. These drums are among the most prized possessions of a village. Villagers believe masks and other wooden carvings can be replaced, but a good 'garamut' onl ...click for details


A rare Ishan face mask (Agbodogin)

Catalogue: Vintage Arts: Regional Art: African: Sculpture: Pre 1940   item# 949736 (stock# I2189w)

A rare Ishan face mask (Agbodogin)
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michael cichon tribal arts
941.224.0440


$6,800.00 

The Ishan live outside the limits of Benin City. Their village life is in stark contrast to the royal pomp and circumstance of the Benin Kingdom. Their masquerades celebrate heroes, heroines, and deities that fought the control of Benin and its kings. Not surprisingly, the masquerades and masks are strictly controlled by the Kingdom, and are allowed to perform at only specific periods during the year. This example shows the classic features of an early example: ears placed high and cut-out, ...click for details


A Dagara anthropomorphic ancestral figure

Catalogue: Vintage Arts: Regional Art: African: Sculpture: Pre 1960   item# 948367 (stock# M578)

A Dagara anthropomorphic ancestral figure
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michael cichon tribal arts
941.224.0440


$9,500.00 

This type of abstract figure was commissioned to protect the village and clan from various issues. In Burkina Faso and other West African countries, a diviner was consulted whenever turmoil erupted and a problem was persistent. Inverted Y-shaped, wooden sculptures, such as this figure, were created by a carver as a diagnostic aid. They are classic examples of the extreme stylization of the human figure as found among the Dagara people, and related Lobi people of Burkina Faso. They are connected ...click for details


A Banja male figure

Catalogue: Vintage Arts: Regional Art: African: Sculpture: Pre 1930   item# 943180 (stock# Z89)

A Banja male figure
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michael cichon tribal arts
941.224.0440


$6,500.00 

This faceted, roughly cut wooden figure comes from the extreme northwestern edge of D.R.Congo, close to the Central African Republic. It was made by Banja or possibly a mix of Banja / Ngbandi peoples. The wood is heavy and dense and shows a remarkably old, softened patina from handling. Known as 'bekimi,' male and female figures in this region are thought to be used in therapeutic rituals. Note the figure's exaggerated ears and open hands, possibly indicative of the type of apotr ...click for details


A fine Edo (Bini) face mask

Catalogue: Vintage Arts: Regional Art: African: Sculpture: Pre 1920   item# 941129 (stock# B40911)

A fine Edo (Bini) face mask
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michael cichon tribal arts
941.224.0440


$5,000.00 

Provenance: Ex-Harry Franklin collection, Los Angeles, California. Purchased at the landmark, Sotheby's, New York auction, April 21, 1990, lot #220. This very old, wooden face mask shows layers of white, chalk-based pigment over top the wooden surface. The patina has acquired an encrusted, thickened look, indicating extensive re-use. Measuring 13"H x 5.50"W. Condition is very fine with some losses to the painted surface. The mask was once part of Ekpo masquerades which, among favo ...click for details


A collection of Akan figurative brass goldweights

Catalogue: Antiques: Regional Art: African: Sculpture: Pre 1900   item# 939162 (stock# A6533 abc)

    A collection of Akan figurative brass goldweights
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michael cichon tribal arts
941.224.0440


$900.00 for the set  

The Sub-Saharan African weighing system for gold was of Islamic origin, ca. 15th century AD, and it spread south along ancient trade routes from the most commercial centers in Mali and the Niger River region. Simple, geometric forms in cast brass were the first to be used. Figurative goldweights began to be made by Akan smiths by the 16th or 17th century. The earliest types were simple effigies of birds, humans, and fish. By the 18th century, quite realistic weight motifs were numbering in the t ...click for details


A fine Nok earthenware 'thinker' figure

Catalogue: Antiques: Regional Art: African: Sculpture: Pre AD 1000   item# 937429 (stock# N490-00c)

A fine Nok earthenware  'thinker'  figure
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michael cichon tribal arts
941.224.0440


$6,500.00 

Of the 'elongated type,' the bearded male sitting with his chin comfortably resting on his raised, right knee in a classic 'thinker' pose. Wearing a broad collar, multiple arm and leg bands, and neatly-formed coiffure ringed in a cap-like manner on the crown of his head. The figure casually holds the end of a serpentine waist sash in his left hand. Classical Nok terracotta dates between 500 BC and AD 200. It was first found in 1943 deep within a tin mine, near the present-day ...click for details


A fine Guro 'zamble' helmet-crest mask

Catalogue: Vintage Arts: Regional Art: African: Sculpture: Pre 1950   item# 933946 (stock# G76209w)

A fine Guro 'zamble' helmet-crest mask
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michael cichon tribal arts
941.224.0440


$4,800.00 

For the Guro people living in Ivory Coast, West Africa, male and female masks are danced together as couples. Not that surprising, except the male in this type of masquerade is represented by a zoomorphic, composite image. This zamble mask is a classic example of the type which combines the profile and horns of an antelope and the jaws of a leopard. However, the mask has a far less ferocious appearance than one would expect. His wife, his female counterpart, 'gu,' is always shown with be ...click for details


An Abelam 'Kara Ut' ornament from Papua New Guinea

Catalogue: Vintage Arts: Regional Art: Oceanic: Sculpture: Pre 1950   item# 933488 (stock# A8710L)

An Abelam 'Kara Ut' ornament from Papua New Guinea
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michael cichon tribal arts
941.224.0440


$950.00 

The Abelam people of Papua New Guinea live between the foothills of the Prince Alexander Mountains to the north and the Sepik River to the south. They are best known for their flamboyant, painted architectural carvings, but they also excel in more delicate, detailed objects, such as this fine, painted fiber, boar's tusk, and shell ornament. It represents a spirit and is anthropomorphic in form. The tusks at the top of the head are not viewed by the Abelam as horns. Rather, they are a remi ...click for details


A superb Bamana 'Ntomo' mask

Catalogue: Vintage Arts: Regional Art: African: Sculpture: Pre 1940   item# 933287 (stock# B614)

A superb Bamana 'Ntomo' mask
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michael cichon tribal arts
941.224.0440


Price on request 

An important example of a Bamana 'Ntomo' society mask from the Segou region of Mali, located along the Niger River in the southwestern part of the country. This large face mask shows the comb-like projections typical of the form, but, in addition to this feature, a fully-rendered female figure stands atop the mask. The paddle-like hands, elongated neck, and fleshy, exaggerated facial features of the figure-and face mask, itself, are an indication of the Segou sub-style. The mask has b ...click for details

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