358 results for "spectandum"

Beautiful set of early 1900s surgical instruments, including an amputation saw stamped A. GOUGEON and a complete Renault trepan with its accessories (rare). Overall in good condition...

Bamileke Kuosi Elephant masks comprise cloth panels and hoods woven from plantain fiber over raffia. On this background glass beads are stitched in geometric patterns. The basic form depicts salient features of the elephant—a long trunk and large ears. The hood fits tightly over the masker's head, and two hanging panels, one behind and one in front, partially conceal the body. The front panel is the elephant trunk, and the two large, stiff circles hinged to either side of the head are its ears, which flap as the masker dances. While the mask symbolizes an elephant, the face is human. Eyeholes provide visibility, and a nose and mouth with teeth are normally present. The glass beads used on these earlier masks were nineteenth-century trade beads of Venetian or Czechoslovakian manufacture, used as well in exchange for slaves. Elephant mask costumes...

An elytron is a modified, hardened forewing of certain insect orders, notably beetles and a few of the true bugs such as the family Schizopteridae

Bamileke Decorative Dance Crest, embroidered with European Glass Beads, Grasslands People, Cameroon. Ex J.Klejman Paris The raffia splint is covered with cloth and colourful minia...

Drawing framed, dated and signed.

Attentive observer, may I challenge you to find some unusual elements in this panel painting? One detail has to do with the symbolic use of color, the other with a later adjustment of the image. Indeed! The Blessed Virgin is not dressed in her usual sky blue cloak, which refers to her purity, but in a red robe. During the Late Middle Ages and early Renaissance, the Virgin often wore such a red garment to refer to the Passion of Christ. After all, the blessing Christ child with his orb would shed his blood for the redemption of mankind. The second strange element catches the eye when one looks closer at the little Jesus. It appears that he was originally depicted completely naked, but got on a transparent loincloth over time. In the past there were several times when nudity in art was subject to some form of censorship. For example, the supervision of Christian art was strongly encouraged by the Council of Trent (1545-1563). This assembly was dealing with the inner-ecclesiastical reform of the Roman Catholic Church. One of the important theologians who followed the council’s guidelines was Joannes Molanus (1533-1585). He did not consider the nakedness of the Christ Child to be edifying and pointed out that children could be endangered in this way. He may have been referring to the dangers of paedophilia. During the 19th century, puritanism emerged. A famous example of a moral preacher was Pope Pius IX...

Singerie is a visual art genre that features monkeys imitating human actions, often dressed in stylish clothing, designed to amuse and offer a satirical take on society. The term ori...

Worn by chiefs and other notables on ceremonial occasions, these beaded heads were highly symbolic power accoutrements and probably represent the heads of enemies taken in battle. Ol...

Bamileke Decorative Dance Crest, embroidered with European Glass Beads, Grasslands People, Cameroon. Private collection Brussels The raffia splint is covered with cloth and c...

The Mezcala culture refers to an ancient Mesoamerican civilization based in the southern Mexican state of Guerrero, particularly within the upper Balsas River region. Though not well...

Anatomical cut of a human skull composed in natural painted papier-maché, with numbered labels on the different elements

Unusual Balinese monkey mask-most probably a representation of Hanuman Here is some more info from Ubud. Mask-making is one of the oldest art-forms in the world. In Bali, masks (t...

Framed, signed and dated.

Bamum Decorative Wooden Ancestor Figure embroidered with European Glass Beads, Grasslands People , Cameroon Private collection Brussels These commemorative statuettes ,representing a...

The central image in Toba Batak art is the singa, a supernatural creature whose likeness protects individuals, homes, and communities from malevolent supernatural forces. The name singa derives from the Sanskrit word meaning lion. However, the Toba Batak singa...

A 6 antique earthenware tiles set evoking a delicate sun-shaped figure surrounded by abstract shapes. A beautiful decorative set that can be used on a chimney or a wall - one of many...

Antique early-20th century British made crocodile overnight travel case, with original cotton lining and small document holder on the inside. The case is oozing style and elegance, t...

The impressive life-size statue of St. Anthony (Lisbon, 1195 – Padua, 1231) used to be probably in a church or monastery of the mendicant order of the Franciscans. You can immediately recognize a Franciscan monk by his brown habit, brown hooded cloak...

This artifact carved in wood is from the Kongo people of the Congo. One side represents a crucified Christ ,whilst the other shows a representation of the Virgin Mary. It’s clearly an object of authority and prestige and a combination of locally grounded and foreign insignia.Very nice use patina. The Kingdom of Kongo, founded in the 14th century, has some of the earliest Christian influence in sub-Saharan Africa. The conversion to Christianity in 1512 of King Alfoso I of the Kongo saw the subsequent creation by Kongolese sculptors of Christian crucifixes...

Antique Eyeglasses in nicely decorated Case, China Circa 1900. The core is in wood and the case in shagreen, tinted with copper oxide. Shagreen is s...

Set of 4 wonderful wooden chairs with lovely use patina

This evocative three-quarter length portrait, executed in the Venetian School during the 17th century, depicts an imagined figure of an elite Ottoman woman, rendered in rich oils on ...

A wonderful headrest from the Karamojong People of Uganda in eastern Africa. It is made out of one piece of wood with the legs having a nice bend shape, supporting on a circular bloc...

This ambitious composition illustrates the ancient episode of The Ring of Polycrates, drawn from Herodotus. In the story, the king of Samos, blessed with continuous success, is advis...

« The Roof of Folly: An Allegory of the Fall » This enigmatic 17th-century painting, laden with symbolic content, echoes the allegorical tradition of Hieronymus Bosch, fusing grotes...

Antique Chinese Opium Box in Cloisonné Enamel, decorated with Floral Motifs and Interior Scenes French Private Collection

Set of two antique 19th C Rural Altarpieces in wood and with heavy encrusted patina 25,5 x 12,5 x 2,7 / 18,5 x 8 x 4 cm.

This painting combines a lavish still life with human figures. On the left, large jugs and bowls of fruit are presented by a servant depicted as a “Moor”; on the right, a young boy p...

Ethnographic Fish Scale Hat Handmade Molucca, Indonesia.

Made of earthenware, this set of tiles (5) depicts a beautiful but mysterious winged creature. Chimera, like and placed on a pedestal, this creature sh...

The knives were handmade with heavily decorated Forged Iron blades with embellished wooden handles. They would use brass or leather wrappings and tacks that turned their weapons into...

Dummy Boards’ are flat, oil painted figures in trompe l’oeil- often life-sized (sometimes smaller), which were placed around the house: in halls, corridors, by fireplaces and on stai...

Standing Fang Mabea Maternity of Museum quality, holding a pestle with both her hands. The mother's head is slightly turned to the left, while the child, which she carries on her bac...

The horse skull has been opened up on one side showing the inplant of the teeth below the gum line and the inside of the cranium.

Old large pectoral necklace in the shape of a breastplate, originating from Tibet. Magnificent color work with a mixture of turquoise stones, red beads, silver and copper. The suppor...

The Diorama was in a private collection for more than 20 years and is said to have been exposed at the China Exposition 1902 in Copenhagen.This group of Chinese polychromed-decorate...

Wooden sculpture of a Dancing Tengu, Late Edo–Meiji Period, Japan An animated and finely sculptured wooden figure of a Tengu, captured mid-step in a vigorous dance. The supernatural ...

Lovely set of 5 antique earthenware tiles with an elegant pheasant surrrounnded by nature. Strong symbol of luck, imperial bird, the pheasant is associated with immortality and was often used as sepulchral symbol in early Christian art...

Set of 2 small antique earthenware tiles.

Red earthenware set of tiles (3) with an abstract design surrounded by curvaceous ornaments. A charming and inspiring piece of art that can be used as a m...

Old Chinese Opium Box in Cloisonné Enamel, decorated with Vases and Flowers. French Private Collection

Framed, signed and dated.

Unknown academy student 19th C drawing, pencil on paper, Framed, Signed.

Zacharie Noterman or Zacharie Notermann or Zacharias Noterman, Ghent 1820 and Paris 1890, is a Belgian painter and engraver, specializing in the painting of antics, scenes of monkeys...

Anthropomorph Terracotta Vase

Beautifully crafted dager from Nigeria (Haussa People) with an organic handle. Hausa people are frond in northwestern Nigeria and adjacent southern Ni...

Hard wood with rests of polychromy.

Gustave FONTAINE ( Etterbeek 1877-1952 Brussels). Sculptor–painter. Took courses in Saint-Josse-ten-Noode, continued his training at the Academy of Brussels and with the sculptor Julien Dillens...

Gustave Fontaine (Etterbeek 1877-1952 Brussels) was a sculptor–painter. He took courses in Saint-Josse-ten-Noode and continued his training at the Academy of Brussels and with the sculptor Julien...

The artist portrayed an upper-class lady who has some facial features of Reynolds' Mrs Andrews. More specifically, the long, straight nose and the large eyes. Her head resting on her...

Three old and well used bark cloth beater made out of a wooden shaft with a cross-hatched blackened tip which is lashed into position by a strip of cane. These grooved wooden beater were tools used to pound and soften tree bark, for the processing of bark cloth used as clothing. This tool has many different variations that are seen in indigenous cultures worldwide, yet all for a similar purpose. They vary in size, shapes, and materials. They are carved with parallel striations. Some bark beaters...

Preparation for Carnival: a three day festival of insatiable eating, drinking and carousing that preceded the forty days of Lent, a period of penitence when the pious drank only wate...

An old classic Bamana lock , decorated with engraved lines, representing antilope horns ,legs bent appearing at the bottom and a beautiful dark patina a...

Beautiful leather shoe from Eastern Europe tracing back to the 19th century. This vintage item features delicate and detailed patterns. A beautiful item steeped in history that will ...

Antique French wooden steer's head,used as the exterior sign of a butcher’s shop (in French they would call it a boucherie). The sign must be over a hundred years old,still has his o...

A handmade wooden sculpture, study of a Barracuda head with open mouth

There is a glass window on just one side so these would not have a counter between the customer and shop assistant, perhaps they were used to weigh tea, or coffee or chocolate.

The cigar store Indian originated as a tradition, not in the United States but in Europe, where carved “Virginie men,” as Europeans called native Americans, were used for advertising...

Five ceremonial beaded flutes or whistles from the Cameroon grasslands. They come in various geometric forms, taking on the shape of a hollowed, stylized figure that combines human a...

Terracotta pot of roughly crescent shape featuring a pair of naively modelled human figures seated on the concave edge, each with arms folded to the abdomen and feet pointing downwar...