African Decorative Objects

The Giraffe Bowl from Ardmore Ceramics, a masterpiece crafted in South Africa. Standing 7 inches tall, 15 inches long, and 16 inches wide, this ceramic ar...

Terracotta African Canari Vessel with Two Spouts Serpent Detail. Cote D’Ivoire, circa 1960.

Usha Seejarim works with mundane, everyday objects that resonate with daily household rituals and women’s labour globally, reinterpreting these into sculptural forms. Clothing pegs a...

Introducing the Wiseman Ceramics Elephant Bust, a stunning piece hand-sculpted by Thabo Mbhele and painted by Virginia. Part of the Big Five Collection, this ceramic masterpiece capt...

Hand Carved Two Handle Dough Bowl.

Bamana Mask on a custom ebony wood stand.

- Handbuilt freckles terracotta jar - made of clay collected from the potter's surroundings. - made in the Moroccan Rif mountains by the potter Raja. Approximate measurements: 8...

Jan Ernst is a multidisciplinary designer specializing in functional art and spatial design using clay as his main medium. The work is driven by his fascination with natural structur...

Large Moroccan Mamounia glass lantern with Moorish design. Elegant Impressive intricate pierced metal and glass Moroccan lantern. Large 29 inches tall with clear, blue, green, red an...

All our TOTEM sculptures are hand carved in Southern Africa from sustainable alien timber by a group of Zimbabwean artists who set their own prices, th...

Moroccan Moorish metal candle lantern with open metal work Moorish design. Hurricane candle lamp handcrafted in Morocco by artisans, metal handcut and ...

Hand carved wooden Bambara Mali figure.

Pair of very decorative brown and green handcrafted Moroccan ceramic vases from Fez with two handles hand-graved with green Arabic Art writing ca...

Late 19th century bronze torque necklace on stand.

Introducing the Hand-Painted Design Vase by Senzo Duma Ceramic Arts, directly from South Africa. Handcrafted by Senzo Duma and painted by Zinhle Nene, this 8-inch vase features intri...

Contemporary Moroccan free form shaped onyx bowl. Grey and taupe in color. From a large collection of different shapes, sizes and colors.

Great and unique shape carved malachite stone ashtray or vide poche. Imposing item, stunning color and pattern which makes it unique. Natural malachite sculpture. Some are called vide poche or ashtray dresser caddy...

Adorned with spiked braids, this prestigious custom mounted Ashetu hat embodies the cultural significance of the Bamum and Bamileke people of Cameroon, Central Africa, who revered th...

Vintage Moroccan perfume bottle: a rosewater sprinkler hand crafted most likely in Marrakech. These bottles are all one-of-a-kind, made in an art-deco/baroque by skilled artisans fro...

Creel and Gow Wicker (Rattan) pedestal with Urn. Made exclusively for Creel and Gow in Tangier Morocco.

Introducing the Ardmore Ceramics Hand-Painted Ceramic Urn, a stunning piece of art that seamlessly blends craftsmanship and creativity. This magnificent urn, standing at an impressiv...

Hornbills are strange and beautiful birds, often incorporated in local cultures. In Africa, they are respected by people and involved in mythology and folklores. These birds are not ...

Signed: Jaimal Odedra Each piece is modeled and cast by hand using a traditional Moroccan sand casting method. "In creating these works, I was interested in exploring and enhan...

Signed: Jaimal Odedra Each piece is modeled and cast by hand using a traditional Moroccan sand casting method. "In creating these works, I was interested in exploring and enhan...

Signed: Jaimal Odedra Each piece is modeled and cast by hand using a traditional Moroccan sand casting method. "In creating these works, I was interested in exploring and enhan...

Large Moroccan Moorish polished brass planter, handcrafted and chiselled with fine Moorish arches and foliate designs. On each side there are a round hand-carved handle, the interior is copper red and polished gold for the exterior. Very decorative round shape brass plant holder...

Vintage Moroccan footed box, handcrafted from brass with overlay carved bone in orange amber color and white. Decorative Moroccan vintage brass canister...

- Handbuilt freckles terracotta jar - made of clay collected from the potter's surroundings. - made in the Moroccan Rif mountains by the potter Raja. Approximate measurements: 8...

From N'Chwaning Mine, Kalahari Manganese Field, Northern Cape Province, South Africa. Rich specimen of Transparent pink rhodochrosite crystals with sugar-like microcrystals on the s...

- Handbuilt freckles terracotta jar - made of clay collected from the potter's surroundings. - made in the Moroccan Rif mountains by the potter Raja. Approximate measurements: 13.5 x 9 x 14 in // 39 x 27 x 35 cm; weight 6 lb // 9 kg Handmade: Variation is to be expected, each piece differs in color, size, shape and decorations due to its handmade nature and natural pigments. memòri is about simplicity, imperfections, and embracing the "flaws". Each piece is fired in an open fire - a dug hole during more than 12 hours, which makes unexpected and surprising results, including smoke marks on some pieces. This means that each piece is one of a kind and cannot be duplicated. Care instructions: The ceramics are not glazed. We advise you to keep it as a decorative object if you want to conserve the original aspect. About the savoir-faire, the modeled pottery The potters of northern Morocco perpetuate the ancient art of modeled pottery, which first appeared around 6,000 BC. The techniques and patterns used today are very close to those of their origins. This ancestral know-how, which has disappeared around the Mediterranean, still lives in the pre-Rif. Today, these potters are the guardians of this ancient art. The modeled pottery according to the ancestral art...

- Hand built decorative dog sculpture - made of clay collected from the potter's surroundings. - decorative motifs painted with a goat hair brush made...

- Hand built decorative fish sculpture - made of clay collected from the potter's surroundings. - decorative motifs painted with a goat hair brush made by the potter to apply natur...

- Hand built decorative horse sculpture - made of clay collected from the potter's surroundings. - decorative motifs painted with a goat hair brush made by the potter to apply natu...

- Hand built decorative cat sculpture - made of clay collected from the potter's surroundings. - decorative motifs painted with a goat hair brush made...

Beautiful 20th century copper African currency. Set on a modern black stand 5" x 5". Andrianna Shamaris. The Leader In Modern Organic Design.

Exceptionally Fine Wooden Sarcophagus Mask Third Intermediate Period, 21st Dynasty, circa 1069-945 BC. Acacia wood, rosewood, hippopotamus ivory Masterfully carved from a single piece of fine-grained hardwood, the present mask is characteristic of the most exquisite funerary art made during the 21st Dynasty, and was probably commissioned for a particularly high-ranking individual. The oval face displays a gently smiling mouth with full, outlined lips, furrows at the corners and a bow-shaped philtrum. The straight nose with rounded nostrils, the cheeks full and fleshy and the large, almond shaped eyes with heavy lids and tapering cosmetic lines, set below long, sweeping eyebrows. Social collapse across the Mediterranean in the Late Bronze Age meant that the 21st Dynasty in Egypt was a period of great turmoil. Trade routes were disrupted, governments collapsed, and mass migration occurred. Economic scarcity meant that traditional funerary practices in Egypt were also affected, with a lack of material and financial resources leading to the reuse of preexisting material. As a result, during the 21st Dynasty, 19th and 20th Dynasty coffins changed ownership rapidly and were heavily recycled for new purposes. Tombs were also unmarked allowing them to be shared by many people. These new practices brought forth a shift in the understanding of funerary paraphernalia. No longer important objects owned forever by the deceased, they were now simply seen as short-term transformative devices, whose symbolic and ritualistic meaning could be appropriated for others. However, paradoxically, the art of coffin-making also reached new heights during this period, and many of the richly dec- orated “yellow” coffins, characteristic of the 21st Dynasty, are remarkable works of art in their own right. Indeed, knowing that coffins were being reused throughout Egypt, the Egyptian élite set themself apart by commissioning lavish sarcophagi decorated with the images and texts meant to help guide them to the afterlife, and which would otherwise have adorned the tomb walls. As coffins were the chief funerary element which now identified the dead and allowed them a physical presence in the world of the living, their quality and appearance were of the utmost importance. The traditional coffin ensemble was made of three parts: a wooden mummy cover, which laid directly atop the mummy, an inner coffin, and an outer coffin, both made of a lid and case. Additional decorative elements, such as masks, were carved out separately and later glued or pegged to the lids. After the completion of the painted decoration, the sarcophagus was covered in a varnish to give it its yellow colour. Gilding was sometimes used for the coffins of the high priests’ families, notably on parts representing naked skin, such as the face mask. However, some of the élite tactically avoided gilding altogether as to ensure that their coffin would not be looted. When manufacturing the inner and outer coffins, particular attention was paid to the woodwork. Displaying the skill of the carpenter, this type of funerary art has largely remained unparalleled throughout Egyptian history. The principal wood used to craft the present mask is Acacia nilotica. The evergreen Egyptian acacia was considered sacred and said to be the tree of life, the birthplace of the god Horus, as well as symbolic of Osiris, the god of the dead and resurrection. The modelling of the face in the wood is superb, but the inlays also help mark this mask out as exceptional. Inlaid eyes and eyebrows were extremely rare and reserved to the finest and most expensive coffins. Traditionally, eyes were made of calcite, obsidian, or quartz, and eyebrows of coloured glass paste or bronze. Here, the pupils, eyebrows, and cosmetic lines are inlaid with Dalbergia melanoxylon, a rare type of wood which belongs to the rosewood genus. In antiquity, however, it was known as Ebony of the Pharaohs, from the Egyptian word “hbny”, meaning dark timber, because of its black, lustrous appearance. An extremely dense and hard wood requiring significant skill to work with, ebony was a luxury material highly coveted by the pharaohs themselves, to make furniture, decorative and funerary objects. The wood was imported with great effort from the southern Land of Punt, most likely modern Sudan, Ethiopia, Djibouti, and Eritrea, alongside other luxury goods such as gold and ivory. A magnificent ebony throne, recovered in the tomb of King Tutankhamun, illustrates the incredible aesthetic potential of this material and why it was so highly valued by Egyptian royalty. Only élite members of Egyptian society could have afford- ed Ebony of the Pharaoh inlays for their funerary mask. The sclerae on the present piece were once both inlaid with hippopotamus ivory. Whiter than elephant ivory, this type of ivory is also denser, and more difficult to carve. The use of this luxury material, reputed for its gleaming appearance, enhances the lifelikeness of the eyes. For the Egyptians, hippopotamus ivory was imbued with magic powers. The hippopotamus was indeed both feared and venerated due to its aggressive behaviour. Whilst the male hippopotamus was associated with danger and chaos, the female was benevolent and invoked for protection, especially of the house and of mothers and their children, through the hippopotamus goddess Tawaret. Thus, not only was hippopotamus ivory used as an inlay and to make practical objects, such as combs and clappers, but it was also used to make talismans like apotropaic wands or knives. Made during a time of scarcity where few could afford made-to-order coffins, the present mask could have only belonged to one of the highest-ranking individuals in society. Undoubtedly one of the finest Egyptian coffin...

Introducing the magnificent Giraffe Urns by Senzo Duma Ceramics, a breathtaking testament to African craftsmanship, meticulously hand-painted and hand-sculpted in South Africa. Craf...

A Group of Tutsi Prestige Basketry Rwanda First half, 20th century Grass and other plant fibers, natural dye, coiling technique Measures: Height, left to right: 7 1/4”; 8”; 9 1/...

Hand-Carved Wood 'Luba' Fertility Statue. Democratic Republic of the Congo, circa 1970.

A complete prehistoric polished jigsaw ammonite fossil, originating from Madagascar, presented on an exclusive museum-quality painted plaster base. A natural historical artefact, pre...

An unusual blacknite quartz cluster specimen with covelline and bornite from Ambositra, Madagascar, presented on one of our museum-quality painted plaster bases. This striking and un...

Introducing the exquisite Ceramic Parrot Tureen, a masterpiece crafted by the skilled hands of Senzo Duma Ceramics in the heart of South Africa. This unique creation not only serves...

This substantially sized sphere of AAA-quality malachite with gorgeous color and natural patterns including a plethora of beautifully defined bullseyes comes from the DRC and has bee...

Introducing the magnificent Ceramic Leopard Urn, a masterpiece born from the skilled hands of Senzo Duma Ceramics in the heart of South Africa. Crafted with meticulous attention to ...

Set of 2 Art Glass Egyptian Perfume Bottles 1980s. Handcrafted Egyptian art glass gilt glass perfume bottle. Egyptian perfume bottles set of two hand blown colorful decorative multic...

A large botryoidal green malachite specimen from Kolwezi, Congo, presented on an exclusive museum-quality painted plaster display plinth. Named for its distinctive form resembling a...

This unique Madagascan Blue Celestite Cluster exhibits large, gem crystals of remarkable quality, featuring prism faces and sharp chisel-terminations - surpassing the average blue-gr...

Whimsical soapstone red elephant beautiful piece good luck , charm nice clean condition minimalist piece a great piece for Post modern , Danish Modern Home decor.

From Tafelkop, Goboboseb Mountains, Brandberg Mountain, Erongo, Namibia Lustrous 7" tall transparent deep-purple amethyst quartz crystals on brown-white matrix. The amethyst crystal...

This unique Madagascan Blue Celestite Cluster exhibits large, gem crystals of remarkable quality, featuring prism faces and sharp chisel-terminations - surpassing the average blue-gr...

These exquisite Neolithic bracelets from Mali are a captivating testament to ancient craftsmanship and ingenuity. Carved from limestone with natural crystalline veins coursing throug...

Beautiful one-of-a-kind, free-form ocean jasper bowl from Madagascar. This will make a beautiful centerpiece to complement your home and polished to ...

Ashanti cast bronze ceremonial staff top in the shape of a hoe with 3 cast turtles, from Ghana. It is in good condition with a deep patina and polish from traditional use, appropria...

Vintage decorative Moroccan Red Glass Perfume Bottle Sprinkler with Embossed Metal Overlay. Handcrafted Moroccan Moorish red painted glass perfume bottle or rose water sprinkler with...

From N'Chwaning Mine, Kalahari Manganese Field, Northern Cape Province, South Africa. Rich specimen of translucent red rhombohedral rhodochrosite crystals on black manganite matrix....

Rare Tiger's Eye Stone Style Ashtray South Africa Circa 1955 Caramel Color

This unique Madagascan Blue Celestite Cluster exhibits large, gem crystals of remarkable quality, featuring prism faces and sharp chisel-terminations - surpassing the average blue-gr...

This basket is made of natural elements and traditional fibers sourced from nature and assembled together by skilled weavers, using the extract of dyes obtained from natural sources ...