Tribal Art

A hand-carved wooden "Nupe stool", made by the Nupe People, a tribe who lives by the Niger River in Nigeria. This kind of 8-legged stool was used during important meetings or market...

19th-century bronze currency bracelet / Manilla in horseshoe form with fixed opening. Intricate graphical swirl design and tips are shaped with large flat ends with cross pattern des...

Statues of Juju Man or shamans were used for ceremonies connected with religious beliefs and magical practices. The general understanding of their meaning as including a supernatural...

Tall hand-carved wooden statue of a Ju Ju Man crafted by the Egba People in Abeokuta, Ogun State (part of Nigeria), circa 1940s. The pupils are made from nails, which intensifies the...

19th-century bronze currency bracelet / Manilla in horseshoe form with fixed opening. Intricate graphical swirl design and tips are shaped with large flat ends with 5 beads on each s...

Early to mid-19th-century bronze currency bracelet / Manilla in circle form. Intricate graphical geometrical. This type of bracelet was worn/used by the Zaghawa People also called Bé...

Early to mid-19th-century bronze currency bracelet / Manilla in circle form. Intricate graphical geometrical. This type of bracelet was worn/used by the Zaghawa People also called Bé...

Hand-Carved Wood 'Senufo’' Fertility Statue, West Africa. Ivory Coast, circa 1970.

Tall hand-carved wooden oracle or divination tapper "Iroke Ifa" statue, showing a kneeling woman holding her breasts. Yoruba, Nigeria, circa 1930s. Yoruba belief specifies that each ...

A fine Baule female figure Standing leaning forward with serene expression with hands on abdomen Period: early 20th century Condition: Old Insect holes and minor damage Measures: H ...

Rare mid century Lobi folk tribal art female figure wooden sculpture produced in Burkina Faso, Africa by anonymous designer in the 1940s. In good original condition. Dimensions: H:...

Early 20th-century brass currency bracelet / Manilla in horseshoe form with fixed opening. Hand-stamped and shaped graphical motives and the ti...

A hand modelled statue of a male coca chewer figure , known as a Coquero, wearing a sash sitting upon a bench,  the coca quid in his right cheek, with black negative resist design Pr...

Large Vintage Native American beaded Blanket Fine large wool blanket with finely executed beadwork strip on buckskin with satin detail ...

A well-loved traditional stool or seat from the Akan people of Ghana. The supports for Akan stools take many forms, they can be purely geometric or architectural with simple posts a...

Museum quality Southern Arapaho (Hinono’ei) Native American Plains Indian leggings circa 1880s. Constructed of dyed native tanned hide with viridian green dye and ochre yellow embel...

Bronze Dan (also called Yakuba) bell, Cote d'Ivoire, circa 1960s. This Dan bell is made from the lost-wax process. It has a looped handle and stylized designs on the bell and around ...

A tall hand-carved statue of a dancer "Queen Dancer" crafted by the Egba People, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria, circa 1950s. The statue is hand-carved in a rather rough way, not very...

Ancient nomadic belts, covered with embroidery and ancient coins. Purchased by a young oriental man in a European market. they can also be used as blinds for curtains. nr. 1 - cm. 5...

A fine Zulu head rest neck rest South Africa Raised on central pillars with geometric lozenge shaped carving all over. Measures: 22 x 14 x 5 cm approx. Period Early 20th century Ex U...

Guro mask 'kyasa' Ivory Coast Wood, paint, metal, hide 38cm Provenance: Peter Peretti (1945-2022) London, United Kingdom Acquired in Paris in the mid 1960s

Ibeji pair Ajasse Nigeria Wood, beads, pigment, offering remains 26.5cm and 25cm ex Beatrice Leutert and Marcel Plüss collection, Thurgau, Switzerland

An old tribal bag, originally meant to be carried over the shoulder or the back of a donkey. A very nice example with lots of details. Can be used in a variety of ways - wall hangin...

Sepik Turtle stool Head Rest Oceanic Polynesian Australian A cute small stool or Headrest carved in the form of a turtle from the Sepik region of Papua new Guinea A beautiful objec...

Native American Antique Pima Basket with bird or eagle motive Vintage Pima early 20th century Willow and Devils Claw Basket or Tray, Width 9 inches...

Senufo figure Ivory Coast 27cm wood on a metal stand

Kazak rugs have primarily been produced as village productions rather than city pieces. Made from materials particular to individual tribal provinces and the rugs of the Caucasus typically display bold geometric designs in primary colours. Kazak rugs are a type of Armenian rug...

Nafana "Bedu" mask, from Southern Burkina Faso/Ivory Coast. Wood with natural earth pigments. Note the double faces, one with tubular eyes and mouth for the dancer and the larger a...

Asante (Ashanti) stool mmaa gwa Ghana Wood 20cm x 33cm

Wonderful object with arrow shaped blades. Beautiful decorative with complex and fascinating history; Iron currency tokens are among the most compelling and virtuosic of sub-Sahara...

Tsonga figure South Africa Wood 21cm

Kiwoyo-Muyombo mask Pende DRC Wood 30cm small restoration on the top on a professional customised metal stand ex private collection London, UK

Baule colonial figure from Ivory Coast 26.5cm tall ex German collection

This set of 3 pieces of African currency is very interesting. Looking like some sort of ancient maraca, these 19th century pieces jingle and noise-make with each step. The dimensions...

Guro pulley Ivory Coast Wood 26cm on a customised metal stand

Very beautiful and well-preserved vintage terracotta vessel with removable lid from the Congo region, Bakongo ethnic group. The fine decoration is partly engraved, but also modeled ...

Lwena staff Angola Wood 43cm Provenance: - Michel Koenig, Brussels, 1970s

This Ikat textile originates from the Island of Sumba, Indonesia. It is hand-woven using naturally dyed yarns via a method passed on through generations. It features a stunning array...

1920s Persian Tabriz Rug with a weeping willow tree design on a slightly worn dark field Details rug no. j3181 size 10' 1" x 14' 6" (307 x 442 cm)

Carved wood Akuaba, sometimes known as an Ashanti doll or a Fanti doll. Untouched condition with a beautiful natural age-related patina. Akua'ba (sometim...

An antique Ashanti ceremonial stool, carved from a single piece of wood. The up-curved seat stands on five supports, the central one pierced with small semi circles and the outer four supports carved, fretted. In very good condition Length 46cm Height 34cm Width 24cm The origin of the Ashante culture can be found in the Akan ethnic groups that inhabited West Africa around Lake Volta and the Gulf of Guinea. The Asante formed a strong confederation that developed from the late 17th century, with the founding of the city of Kumasi, and whose economy was based on trade, gold mining and slave traffic. They are the most important and larger ethnic group in Ghana and was one of the few African states capable of resisting European imperialism. Within the material heritage and furniture of the Ashante people, some of the most outstanding pieces are the ceremonial stools, being the Golden Stool...

Early 20th century prestige cloth, Dida people, Ivory Coast Raffia, natural dyes An engaging example of resist-dyed prestige cloths, this raffia fragment is professionally mounted o...

Shaman body bags from the early 20th century were sacred and significant artifacts used in certain cultural practices and rituals among various indigenous communities and shamans in ...

Fine Native American Santa Clara Pottery Jar by Legoria Tafoya (1911-1984) Black ware of Ovoid form with encircling Evanya design, very nice design shape and size Period 1950/60s ...

Created in the early to mid-20th century, by an anonymous artist of the Akan people of Ghana, probably Ashanti (Asante) or Fanti (Fante). What separates this stool from the standard ...

A finely carved significant Yoruba Male Ibeji figure with a tall headdress, expressive eyes, original bead belt and heavy wear and polish from native use. Areas of encrusted camwood ...

Ethiopian and other African-influenced furniture had been made from the 1850s, the most famous being Adolf Loos's "Theban stool" designed around 1903 in t...

Large Pre Columbian  INCA / Early Colonial period  Wood Kero    A superb Large Inca Kero cup profusely carved in the mosaic style with a image of the Inca or...

Fine large Antique Aboriginal Wunda shield in hard wood carved on both sides with a highly artistic Zigzag Geometric fluted design colored with red and and white pigment & paint. The...

Amazing and scarce JUDAICA object, we have here one of the most touching jewish objects we had for a long time, this small silver dowry box was made in Algeria in the early 19th century, it is all covered with symbols of jewish faith and of couples, the sliding lid has 2 flanking birds with hamsa (protective hand) on each side and a flower vase in the middle. one side shows two flanking lions with a tree in the middle and the other side shows again two big and two small birds with a flower bowl in the middle, front side has a key hole and next to it there is the Hebrew inscription ס״ט״" which says Siman tov or in English "a good sign" it is taken from the wedding blessing, underneath the lock there is another inscription with the name ״עזיזה בת אברהם בן חמו״ which is the name of the bride, her father and her grandfathers name. the box is full marked a lot of times with the silversmith mark, every side of the box is marked. this box was probably ordered by the grooms family to hold the jewelry they are giving to the bride as dowry, this type of objects are rare and there are just a few of them on museum collections. DOWRY (Heb. נְדֻנְיָה), the property a wife brings to her husband at marriage; the Yiddish equivalent, nadn, is from the same root. The custom of nedunyah became clearly defined and institutionalized only in the talmudic period. In biblical times, mohar (מֹהַר), whereby the groom bought his wife from her father (Gen. 24:53; Ex. 22:15–16; Hos. 3:2), was the accepted practice. It was then customary that the groom give the bride gifts, and that she bring certain property to her husband's home upon marriage: slaves, cattle, real estate, etc. (cf. Gen. 24:59–61; 29; Judg. 1:14ff.; I Kings 9:16). Evidence of the custom of nedunyah is to be found in Tobit (7:14; 8:21) and in the Assuan papyri (Cowley, Aramaic, nos. 15, 18). Gradually, mohar was superseded by the ketubbah custom according to which the husband merely assumed the responsibility of compensation to his wife in case he divorced her: he had to pay her 200 zuzim if she had been a virgin at the time of marriage, and 100 zuzim if a widow or divorcée (see *Ketubbah). By talmudic times, the institution of nedunyah was prevalent; the father gave a dowry to the bride since the daughter was excluded from paternal inheritance. Fifty zuzim (equivalent to the worth of 180 grams of silver) was the minimum amount a father was obliged to give to his daughter (Ket. 6:5). Parents usually gave much more, according to their social standing. Community funds provided the dowry for an orphan or a very poor girl (ibid.; cf. Sh. Ar., YD 251:8). In case of her father's death, the brothers of a minor girl were obliged to give her the minimum dowry, and the court estimated how much her father would have given her above the minimum dowry. The sum was then taken out of the father's estate and given to the daughter upon majority (Ket. 6:6; 68a–69b). In the absence of such an estimate, each daughter was entitled to receive one-tenth of the value of her father's estate in money, or in valuables (Yad, Ishut, 20:4–7; Sh. Ar., EH 113:4). If the father was unable or unwilling to pay the promised dowry at the betrothal ceremony, the groom could refuse to marry his bride (Ket. 13:5; Ket. 108b–109a). Insistence on exact payment of the promised dowry, however, was frowned upon by later rabbinic authorities (Rema to Sh. Ar., EH 2:1). In certain communities it was customary for the groom's father to make a dowry contribution equal to that of the bride's father (Ket. 102b). The dowry, whether given in real estate, slaves, money, or chattel was recorded in the marriage contract (the ketubbah) and in some instances one-third or one-fifth of the actual value of the dowry was added to the sum mentioned in the ketubbah. Based upon a decree enacted by *Simeon b. Shetah (first century C.E.), the Talmud ruled that the husband and his entire property were liable for compensation as stipulated in the ketubbah, either in case he died (when she collected the sum specified in the ketubbah from the heirs) or in case he divorced his wife (Ket. 82b). For the status of the dowry and the husband's rights and obligations, see below. The rabbinic enactments (Takkanot Shum) by R. Jacob *Tam and by the rabbinic synod of the communities of Speyer, Worms, and Mainz (Germany) stipulated that if a woman died...

This is a "Mother drum", Asante, Ghana. with polychrome paints, Circa 1935. In the style of the well-known carver Osei Bonsu (1900-1977). Low relief imagery envelopes the body of t...

Beautiful Vintage Italian multi strand Seed coral pearl necklace Real Italian salmon red Coral imitation pearl and black malachite Italian Peri...

Ancient Fiji Islands Flat Serving Bowl or Platter 19th century, made of very dense hardwood with deep patina, and expected wear on bottom. Two small opposing holes for suspension. B...

A well crafted wooden Folk Art Mortar and Pestle. The piece is used for crushing everything from herbs and spices, to medicines. While the piece is practical, the wooden craftsmans...

Papua New Guinea standing Bioma figure with raised designs, stylized classic face, and additional face in stomach. Mounted on custom metal and wood base. Created mid 20th century...

A good example of an African Ashanti tribal headrest. Ghana. Early to mid-twentieth century.

An exceptionally large Akha Tribe woven silver bracelet with spiral design. This Tribal bracelet encompasses tradition Hill tribe silversmithing techniques ...

A Ulo Akha woman's Tribal headdress adorned with framework of bamboo, beads, pompons, seeds and other unique items. Immerse yourself in the rich cul...