African Arts Gallery

Belgian collection of African tribal art .
This Bamoun rider on a rearing horse would represent King N'Doya in his victory over the Peuls, in the 19th century. A dark brown leather dresses the shapes of the character and his mount, a lighter leather sheaths the hooves. The king brandishes a broken spear. Dark patina, verdigris inlays.
The Bamun inhabit a region full of both wooded reliefs and savannahs. This large territory called Grassland located in the southwest of Cameroon is also the seat of other related ethnic groups such as the Bamiléké and the Tikar. Bamoun art is illustrated by bas-relief sculptures, depicting battles, festivals and hunts referring to the past, which adorn the doors and walls of buildings and palaces. Appearing in the 1920s, Bamoun wall art developed under the reign of Sultan Seidou, mainly in the city of Foumban. As for wood carving, rites preceded the felling of selected trees. (source: Claude Tardits)