19th Century Tribal Art

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...

This finely carved, medium-sized chair from the Jinka culture in Ethiopia features an upright back-support with an unusual and attractive cut-out cross decoration. A series of down...

Late 19th to Early 20th Century Silver Wire Serpent Bracelet, Rajasthan, India A substantial silver cuff made of wire bent in the shape of a serpent, these bracelets were worn on th...

This is a Central Asian Old Tekke Bukhara Turkmen Carpet from the Turkmenistan Bukhara region with a rare and beautiful color composition. Bukhara carpet (Turkmen Rug, Bokhara, Bu...

Late 19th-early 20th century Tribal mask, West Nepal A mask from West Nepal with slanted almond shaped eyes, very small ears and an oval mouth showing carved upper and lower teeth o...

This is a Central Asian Old Tekke Bukhara Turkmen Carpet from the Turkmenistan Bukhara region with a rare and beautiful color composition. Bukhara carpet (Turkmen Rug, Bokhara, Bu...

This large, impressive nineteenth-century Ethiopian throne, from the Wollega Oromo culture, features a high, upright back-rest. An attractive cut-ou...

Late 19th-early 20th century Tribal mask, West Nepal A large mask from West Nepal with a small grin and bared teeth surrounded with pink powder, faint traces of which can also be se...

Late 19th to early 20th century tribal wood paduka sandals, India A sculptural pair of Indian paduka (khadau chappals) sandals with a simple scale pattern and nice encrusted patin...

A teak burl wood bowl crafted on the island of Java, Indonesia. The bowl was cut from a much larger slab of burl wood and maintains an organic shape and natural texture. It has aged ...

Superb and rare museum quality Holo mvunzi wooden statue late 19th/early 20 th century DR Congo / Angola For sale at Art Gallery Decoster Belgium Tribe :...

Stunning and rare Omani tribal necklace in gold and silver featuring eight Burgau thalers dated 1780. 19th century. Very good condition. Preserved and professionally framed. Dimensions of the necklace: 52 x 30 x 3 Dimensions of the frame: 70 x 47 x 5 Secure shipping. This fine Omani necklace of silver and gold comprises two strands of spiky, seed pod-like silver beads; gold-wrapped beads; eight silver Maria Theresa thaler coins; and a large silver and gold amulet box, with multiple chain tassels each of which finishes with a square-shaped pendant cut from sheet silver. The cigar-shaped amulet box called hirz would have contained some Koranic verse or religious text. Such a spectacular display of wealth would only have been worn at times of important festivities such as marriage celebrations. Maria Theresa thalers were made in Austria since the reign of Empress Maria Theresa of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The Empress died in 1780 and since that time, all thalers that were subsequently struck were minted with that date regardless of the actual year that they were produced. The coins achieved such a level of trust for their silver content (which is 83.3% silver) in the Middle East that neither the design not the date was varied, and so for more than 200 years the coins were used as an international currency among the tribes and the states of the Middle East, in much the same way as the Spanish dollar was used as an international currency at the time elsewhere. The thalers were used to complete most important transactions locally and were also given as dowries. They were also an important source of silver and were melted locally for jewellery. The coins made their way to the ports of the Red Sea, Egypt and northern Africa from the ports of Genoa, Trieste, Livorno and Marseille. European traders used the coins to buy precious materials from the Gulf and northern Africa which it desired – commodities such as spices, coffee, gum Arabic, indigo, pearls, and tortoise shell. The importance and the beauty of the coins saw them incorporated into local jewellery most particularly in Oman and Yemen. References Al-Jadir, S., Arab & Islamic Silver, Stacey International, 1981. Harrigan, P., ‘Tales of a Thaler’, Saudi Aramco World, January/February 2003. Hawley, R., Omani Silver, Longman, 1978. Hawley, R., Silver: The Traditional Art of Oman, Stacey International, 2000. Rajab, J.S., Silver Jewellery of Oman, Tareq Rajab Museum, 1998. Ransom, M., Silver Treasures from the Land of Sheba: Regional Yemeni Jewelry...