African Tribal Art

Yoruba people have one of the highest incidents of twin births in the world. As a result, twin children are regarded as extraordinary, divine beings protected by Sango, the deity of ...

19th-century bronze currency bracelet / Manilla in horseshoe form with fixed opening. Intricate graphical design with lines and accent points on the top and at both tips. This type o...

Forged bronze headdress or kind of crown/tiara "God of Thunder" which was used for protection. The size is slightly changeable, as the headdress bronze band is open on one side. Yoru...

19th-century bronze currency bracelet / Manilla in horseshoe form with fixed opening. Intricate graphical design with a lattice pattern. This type of bracelet was worn or used by 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 cross pattern des...

Large carved wooden spoon in the shape of a standing female figure, with a round bowl over her head, Yoruba People, circa 1960s. The numbers are the inventory numbers from Penn Stat...

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...

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 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...

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...

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 ...

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

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 ...

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

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...

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 ...

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:...

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

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...

Senufo figure Ivory Coast 27cm wood on a metal stand

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

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

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...

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

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

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...

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 ...

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...

The extraordinary talented throne (2018), a unique artwork by Gonçalo Mabunda in metal scraps and decommissioned ammunitions. Mabunda was born in 1975...

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 ...

Early Ibibio puppet head with strong stern expression through tightly closed lips, large brass tack eyes. With wood tenon mounted in custom base. Total height on base 11 1/4 inches ...

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...

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...

The stool was loved by its owner, repaired in several places with decorated metal straps. It has an openwork, tiered lattice central post and four support posts. It has the older sty...

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 ...

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...

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...

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 ...

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...

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

Bamileke headdress, originating from the Bamileke ethnic group in Cameroon, is ceremonial and symbolic artifacts used in traditional ceremonies and rituals. It is crafted using natur...

This prestigious Kente cloth was handwoven on small hand held looms. The fabric has all been hand sewn to form a marvelous textile. These were originally m...

Vintage Moroccan Berber tribal bracelet from the High Atlas of Morocco. Handcrafted by Berber women using Moroccan silver nickel. The ethnic Nomadic and Bedouin jewelry from the Ma...

Mumuye, Nigeria Iron 22.75 x 5 in. / 28 x 13 cm Height on custom display stand: 24.5 in. / 62 cm

Topoke, DR Congo, Africa Iron Early 20th century 36 x 6 in. / 91 x 15 cm. Height on custom display stand: 38.25 in. / 97 cm. These big iron spear points were made by groups livi...

Moroccan Berber hand-carved wooden sugar hammer "Deggaga". Handcrafted by the Berber women of Morocco, hand-carved and hand painted wood with tribal desig...

An early 20th-century ceremonial chief's coat from Africa represents a magnificent display of cultural heritage and craftsmanship. These coats hold deep significance, symbolizing pow...

So as not to muss their intricate hairstyles, tribal leaders would rest their heads on these petite wooden stands. The combination of conic base and concave rest gives these function...

Chamba, Nigeria, Africa Iron Early 20th century 14.5 x 7 in. / 37 x 18 cm Height on custom display stand: 16.5 in. / 42 cm Various models of these original currency bearers were...

African door in carved wood and bronze of chief Baboun, Cameroon, early 20th century Art Baboun, Cameroon, early 20th century. Unique and rare object. C...

Two Exquisite Yaka Figural Decorative Wooden Combs "Cisakulo". These remarkable antique wooden combs feature handles adorned with geometric carvings the top depicting a standing female and the other comb a male figure. The wooden hair combs are not only for the practical purpose of hair combing but also as items of decoration and adornment. Within the Asante Akan Kingdom of West Africa, these combs held significant cultural value. They were presented to women by family members and male admirers before and during courtship, and subsequently by husbands. Elaborately carved with symbolic designs, these combs symbolize beauty, status, and good fortune in a woman's life. Highly collectible pieces with minor signs of wear on the wood. Dimensions: 11" in height by 2.75" in width. Dimensions: 10" in height by 2.5" in width. Early tribal African wood comb...

19th Century Bronze Coin with Silver Bezel Earrings by Jewels of Santa Fe/Marrakesh A pair of earrings made by Jewels with bronze coins from Morocco and Egypt set in silver bezels a...

Mid-20th Century Moroccan Silver Charm earrings by Jewels of Santa Fe/Marrakesh A pair of earrings made by Jewels with rare silver charms from the Ida ou Nadif people living in the ...

Mid-20th Century Silver Khamsa and Copper Earrings by Jewels of Santa Fe/Marrakesh A pair of earrings made by Jewels with rural Moroccan village pendants with three small khamsas, h...