Catalog: Vintage Arts: Regional Art: African: Sculpture (56)

Fertility doll. H. 16,5 cm. Mid 20th century.

Shrine object, Yoruba, Nigeria/Benin. H. 74 cm, mid 20th century or older. Ex Srdjan Sremac, The Hague.

Large door lock from a door of a granary. H. 53 cm.  Mid 20th century. Ex French private collection.

Bateba Phuwe, made by the ‘carver of the long neck’. Mid 20th century. H. 29 cm. Good condition. Literature: Katsouros/Herkenhoff - Anonyme Schnitzer der Lobi.

Colon figure, Lobi, Burkina Faso. H. 43 cm. Excellent wear and patina. Mid 20th century. Ex Pierre Taliercio, France.

Antelope mask from the Eastern Pende Peoples. Early to mid 20th century. Excellent age wear and patina. H. 45 cm. Yale archive: ao-0038719-001 Provenance: Coll. Christaens Coll. Joseph Hans, Brussels Mamadou Keita, Amsterdam Danny de Waele, Ghent, Belgium, 1995

Wood covered with sheat metal. H. 30 cm. Mid 20th century. One horn repaired. special price: from € 750 for  € 300

Bochio figure, Fon, Benin H. 42 cm, hardwood. Nice cubist figure with good age wear.

Lovemaking couple, mid 20th century. h. 35,5 cm. Provenance: Alain & Angèle Larem, Switzerland Madeleine and Jean-Jacques Keller (until 1980 Abidjan, later Rheinfelden). Good condition with nice age wear.

Male and female figure, wood, textile and glass. H. 32,5 and 36 cm. Mid 20th century. Provenance: Madeleine and Jean-Jacques Keller (until 1980 Abidjan, afterrwards Rheinfelden, Switzerland).

Helmet mask with three faces, Ekoi, Cross River, Nigeria.  Height 62 cm. Mid 20th century. Partly covered with antelope skin. The headdress and the three figures are attached on (partly new) wooden pins and can easily be removed for transport. There is old rodent damage to the figures. Ex Ursula Voorhuis (1932-2021), The Netherlands. A (heavy) stand can be included. More pictures available on request.

This tall figure was made by the Jompre people of Nigeria, although this appears to be an offensive name, probably given by the neighbouring Chamba, and meaning ‘cannibals’. Alternative names for the Jompre include Kutep, Kuteb, Kutev, Mbarike and Zumper. They inhabit the Benue Valley, on the border of Nigeria and Cameroon, an area that is still relatively undocumented. They number approximately 15,000 and are divided into a number of clans, each associated with a particular mountain, and traditionally without a centralised authority. The masks and sculptural forms of this small cultural group resemble those of the neighbouring Jukun and Chamba of western Cameroon. H. 50 cm. Mid 20th century. Ex Klaus Paysan, Stuttgart, Germany, ex Srdjan Sremac, The Hague, The Netherlands.

Ancestor figure. Ca. Mid 20th century. Strong posture and very good patina. The lower legs eaten by termites. H. 46 cm (51cm including the stand).

Lovely Losso ancestor figure with an amazing patina. There is a leather band around one of the legs. H. 24,5 cm. Ex. Alain Dufour, Paris.

H. 85 cm.  Mid 20th century. Artist: Tage from Kpwazang (?) Provenance: Norfolk State Museum Marc Assayag, Montreal, Canada Srdjan Sremac, The Hague Auction: Dorotheum Vienna, ‘Tribal Art’, March 2022.

Anthropomorphic dance figure. Wood and pigments. It has moving arms that are tied to the head. Ca. Mid 20th century or earlier. H. 73 cm. The Eket are a sub group of the Ibibio. Their material is quite rare. Provenance: Robert van der Heijden, Amsterdam, Srdjan Sremac, The Hague.

Alusi shrine figure. H. 59 cm. First half of the 20th century. Ex Jacques Kerchache (1942 - 2001), ex Christie’s Paris, 29-10-2008, ex galerie Walu Basel, ex Hammer Auktionen. Guy van Rijn archive ao-0093787-001.

Depicting two figures that are tied to one other. H. 22 cm. Ca. mid 20th century. Custom made stand included.

Ex Joris Visser, Brussels. H. 55 cm. First half 20th century. Excellent condition.

Gelede mask - Yoruba - Ohori - Benin. H. 25 cm. Mid 20th century. Guy van Rijn archive ao-0110592-001. Ex coll. Ursula Voorhuis (1932-2021).

Rare Colon figure with blue pigments and great patina. H. 57,5 cm. Ca. Mid 20th century. Provenance: private collection The Netherlands. More pictures a available on request. Visit us at the Tribal Art Fair Amsterdam. www.tribalartfair.nl .

Impressive hardwood figure from the Benue region. H. 57 cm. Mid 20th century. Ex coll. Dr. Harald Simon, Germany.

Anthropomorpic female figure. Probably used as a headdress. H. 48 cm. Mid 20th century. Provenance: Kathy van der Pas en Steven van de Raadt, 1998, Otto Schaap, Amsterdam, De Zwaan, Amsterdam, 2020.

A very rare group from Ketu, Benin, probably used as a divination tray or as a display piece for an important Babalawo. Diameter 52 cm, H. 30 cm. Mid 20th century. The hand of one figure has been replaced. Ex coll. Ursula Voorhuis (1932-2021), The Netherlands Ex Zemanek-Münster, Würzburg Guy van Rijn archive: ao-0102485-005 with comments from Ursula Voorhuis and Hans Witte. The scene depicts the consultation of the Ifa oracle by a woman. The Babalawo (father of the secret) or oracle priest in charge sits to the right of the woman. He has taken 16 palm nuts from the ‘Agere Ifa’ (cup for palm nuts), that stands beside him and is about throw the nuts from his left to his right hand. If he drops one nut in the process, he will make two marks in the wood dust on the oracle tray before him, if he misses two nuts, he will make one mark. After two sets of four throws, the result on the tray will indicate to him the oracle verses he will have to recite to his client. The third person that seems to supervise the proceedings is also a Babalawo and even an important one, judging from the thick beaded necklace that hangs over his chest, with an attachment from his neck. It seems that his right hand held a staff, probably an Ifa tapper that is used to tick on the tray in order to attract the attention of Eshu, the messenger.

Baule maternity, Côte d’Ivoire. Made for sale by a traditional Baule carver in the 1920’s-30’s. According to Guy van Rijn there were two workshops in those days, where traditional Baule carvers produced objects for commercial purposes. H. 44 cm. Left hand missing, right arm repaired. Ex Dutch private collection, ex Srdjan Sremac, The Hague.

Tugubele figures represent helpful bush spirits. The belong to the local ritual expert of the Senufo people, assisting them with their oracles and predictions. This figure dates from the first half of the 20th century and shows good signs of use. Provenance: André Vanhecke, Belgium, Srdjan Sremac, The Hague.

Lovely small bird fetish from the early to mid 20th century. H. 24 cm. Ex Jean-Marc Desaive, Belgium, Ex Srdjan Sremac, The Hague, The Netherlands, Ex Berry de Bruijn, Hilvarenbeek, The Netherlands.

L. 48 cm.  Good condition with expected age wear, cracks, some insect damage and some damage to the left ear. First half 20th century. Guy van Rijn ao-0083609-001 Provenance: Arnold Newman (1918-2006), New York, until 2006, Robert Schrimpf, Paris, Christie’s Paris, 2006, Zemanek-Münster, Würzburg, 2009.

A serene mask from the first half of the 20th century. H. 23 cm, L. 26 cm. Light traces of pigment. Ex coll. Ursula Voorhuis (1932-2021), The Netherlands. Guy van Rijn archive: ao-0110538-001.

Male and female Ibeji from Iseyin City, Oyo State., adorned with a necklace and bracelets made of glass beads and a belt made of cocunut discs. H. 26,5 cm. First half of the 20th century. Provenance: Dutch private collection, Robert van der Heijden, Amsterdam.

Very large doll made by a known carver. H. 40,5 cm. Second quarter of the 20th century. Condition: both arms reattached. Lovely honey brown patina. The style of this Akuaba with its unusual coiffure is described in the book ‘Akua’ba Asante Wednesday Child’ by Ron van Doorn and Herbert M. Cole. Provenance: Robert van der Heijden, Amsterdam. (Vetter at Parcours des Mondes, Paris).

Depicting a female spouse figure ‘Blolo Bla’. H. 13 cm. first half of the 20th century. Great age wear and patina. Ex coll. Maine Durieu, Paris. The Baule believe a person is married to both an earthly and a spirit spouse. This sculpture honored its owner’s spirit partner to bring peace, luck, and money. Scarifications on her face and body individualized and enhanced her idealized beauty. The figure stood in the owner’s bedroom where, once a week, he slept alone so they could be together in the dream world. It is rare to find these figures in miniature.

H. 23 cm. (Excluding the beard. Very good complete condition. The mask is covered with red fabric, the eyes are made of aluminium. Provenance: Klaus Paysan (1930-2011), Stuttgart, Germany. Robert van der Heijden, Amsterdam. Exhibited: Staatliches Museum für Naturkunde Schloss Rosenstein, Stuttgart - ‘Afrika, Tiere, Maske und Magie’.

Caryatid stool with a sitting female figure. Hardwood, h. 26 cm, diameter 23 cm. First half of the 20th century. minor repair to one leg. The earrings have been replaced. Provenance: Donald Taitt, Paris, Aponem Auction, 2019, J.M. Desaive, Herve, Belgium

Hardwood, first half 20th century. H. 18 cm. Old insect damage. Ex private collection Belgium, collected in Abidjan in 1968.

Hardwood and iron. H. 38 cm. Provenance: Robert van der Heijden, Amsterdam, Srdjan Sremac, The Hague.