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African art items:


We offer you a large selection of unique pieces of African art. Coming from private collections or purchased directly “in situ”, these works are the subject of a special study to determine their provenance as well as their conditions of acquisition. We make it a point of honor to offer our customers quality works of African art, old or contemporary, acquired within the framework of an ethical market. It is the history of these pieces that we invite you to discover through our gallery and websites.

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Bidjogo Mask
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African art > African mask, tribal art, primitive art > Bidjogo Mask

Animal masks and African decoration.
African mask named vaca bruto   in Creole, provided with real horns, and coming from the Bidjogo , established in the Bissagos archipelago made up of around thirty islands located off the coast of Guinea-Bissau. The mask is worn before or at the end of initiation ceremonies, by a young “cabaro” initiate, who will bend and rear up, conveying the idea of a young animal that is vigorous but still untamed, and the need to go through the initiatory process in order to acquire discipline and mastery.
Minor abrasions and desiccation cracks. Matte patina.


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380.00  280.00

Tetela Statue
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African art > African statues : tribal fetish, maternity > Tetela Statue

Male figure of tetela inspiration, and whose posture indicates combativeness. This is the reactive, energetic warrior pose called pakalala. Oily black patina. Desication cracks, losses.
Scattered throughout the Kasai basin, the Tetela of Mongo origin have been the source of incessant conflicts with their neighbors. They also participated extensively in the slave trade. Their very diversified sculpture is marked by the influence of the groups living in contact with them: in the North, their art was subjected to the influence of the populations of the forest such as the Mongo, in the northwest that of the Nkutschu, and to the west that of Binji and Mputu. Kuba traditions have also been a source of inspiration, as well as those of the Songye in the southwest. Their fetishes are kept ...


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240.00  120.00

Vili mask
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African art > African mask, tribal art, primitive art > Vili mask

Mask with a face printed with a dark median band, hollowed out pupils, and a mouth revealing traditionally filed teeth.
The hairstyle is composed of braids gathered in shells. Two-tone patina. Abrasions and erosions. Present along the Gabonese coast, the Vili broke away from the Kongo kingdom in the 16th century and the Loango kingdom became a powerful state. Now urbanized for the most part, they nevertheless still integrate traditional associations, dependent on ancestor worship such as the Mbouiti or the Bieri. Like the Kongo group, in order to protect themselves against witchcraft and various plagues, they produce a wide variety of magical ritual objects of the nkisi type. Their masks are used by the Ndunga or Djembe association, but also for the funerals of ...


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240.00  90.00

Statue Luba
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African art > African statues : tribal fetish, maternity > Statue Luba

This female figure with a tiered hairstyle has a mboko" , calabash that was filled with kaolin, symbolizing purity and the spiritual world. These containers were used by different Luba societies, more generally by the mediums of the divination society Kilumbu, Bilumbu, or by the healers of the society Buhabo . The soothsayers Mbudye also used it. The faces of these characters embodying the guardian spirits show a peaceful interiority. According to P.Nooter these figures also represented the soothsayer's wife, which underlines its importance in the divination process bilumbu . According to some Luba, however, although a woman, she would represent the first soothsayer Luba, and would also be an allegory of royalty linked to the powerful society of the Mbudye associated with royal power. ...


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180.00  80.00

Buyu Statue
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African art > African statues : tribal fetish, maternity > Buyu Statue

Evocation of vigor and power, this masculine sculpture offers a solid morphology made up of diamonds. Smooth black patina, desication cracks.
Migratory flows have mixed within the same territories Bembe , Lega , Buyu (Buye) or Boyo , Binji and Bangubangu. The Basikasingo, considered by some to be a Buyu sub-clan, are however not of Bembe origin, Biebuyck's work having made it possible to trace their history. Organized into lineages, they borrowed the association of Bwami from the Lega. The bembe and boyo traditions are relatively similar: they venerate the spirits of nature, of water specifically among the Boyo, but also the heroic ancestors, whose will we seek to know by means of divinatory rites. The hunt is also an opportunity to perform sacrifices of gratitude towards the ...


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240.00  95.00

Suku mask
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African art > African mask, tribal art, primitive art > Suku mask

This female-type mask accompanied the voluminous kakungu mask during ceremonies. Greasy dark patina, locally abraded. Native restoration.

The Suku and Yaka ethnic groups recognize common origins and have the same social structure as well as similar cultural practices. They can only be differentiated by their stylistic variations. The mukanda is the name given to all the rites around the initiation ceremony of pubescent young people, consecrating the end of childhood and shared by many communities.
Suku kakungu masks are reputed to be among the largest masks in Black Africa. Their exaggerated features, swollen and hanging cheeks, massive features and prominent chins were to inspire fear in the spectators. These masks supposed to control the rain were out during the initiation ...


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280.00  120.00

Songye Fetish
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African art > The fetish, this emblematic object of primitive art > Songye Fetish

Ex-Luxembourg African art collection.

A small Songye sculpture, finely detailed and devoid of accessories such as the horn at the top in which the magical ingredients were housed. The abdominal cup is also empty. Patient chocolate satin.
The Songye came from the Shaba region of DRC and settled along the Lualaba river in the middle of savannah and forests. Their society is organized in a patriarchal way. Their history is inseparable from that of the Luba to whom they are related through common ancestors. Very present in their society, divination allowed them to discover sorcerers and to shed light on the causes of the misfortunes that befell individuals. They are governed by the yakitengé and by local chiefs. The secret society Bwami counterbalances their power, ...


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180.00  90.00

Statuette Urhobo
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African art > African statues : tribal fetish, maternity > Statuette Urhobo

Former African art collection Mercier br-Les Urhobos, living near the northwest of the Niger Delta River, form the main ethnic group of the Delta State among the 36 states of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. They speak Urhobo, a language of the Niger-Congo group. Together with the Isoko, whose art is close, they are collectively known as Sobo. Their large sculptures depicting the spirits of nature, edjo, or the founding ancestors of the clan, to whom sacrifices were offered, were grouped in shrines within the villages. They also produce figures similar to the ikenga of igbo called iphri , ivwri , of half-animal form half-human. They personify male aggression and are intended for warriors and notables. However, after consultation with the soothsayer, young children can also wear miniature ...


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350.00  150.00

Statuette Metoko
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African art > African statues : tribal fetish, maternity > Statuette Metoko

This figure comes from the Metoko located in the center of the Congolese basin between the Lomami and Lualaba rivers, peoples of the primary forest dedicated to the worship of a single God, monotheism rare in Africa. This piece, cut in three superimposed orange volumes, would form the embodiment of a primordial ancestor. Their company, Bukota, welcoming both men and women, is the equivalent of the association Bwami Lega. Their sculptures, influenced by the neighbouring Mbole, Lega and Binja, played a role in initiation, funeral or circumcision ceremonies, and were then placed on the tomb of high-ranking initiates. Each of these figures had an educational name and meaning, just like the Lega traditions. The Lekas share with the Metoko the institution of the bukota , for which they have ...


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180.00  90.00

Statuette Suku
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African art > African statues : tribal fetish, maternity > Statuette Suku

This small statuette with an androgynous character has a male face extending with a small beard while a strong chest is associated with fertility. The reduced legs, massive and crenellated, are also one of the characteristics of suku sculptures. The chiefs used fetishes named bwene , bisungu representing the ancestor of the clan. Dark patina, residual clay inlays. Cracks.
The Suku and Yaka ethnic groups, very close geographically in the south-west of the Democratic Republic of Congo, have the same social and political structure as well as similar cultural practices. They can only be differentiated by their stylistic variations. Their carved wooden figures, through which they honour their ancestors, and their masks are well known.


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240.00  90.00

Scepter Téké
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African art > The fetish, this emblematic object of primitive art > Scepter Téké

Established between the Republic of Congo, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Gabon, the Teké were organized into chiefdoms whose leader was often chosen from among the blacksmiths. The head of the family, mfumu , had the right to life or death over his family whose importance determined his prestige. The clan leader, gantsié , retained the great protective fetish tar mantsié who oversaw all the ceremonies. It is the powerful sorcerer healer and soothsayer who wascharged" of magical elements, for retribution, the individual statuettes, "mussassi". It was also according to his instructions that worship was given to the ancestors and geniuses of nature. Their secret society, kidumu , used circular flat masks adorned with polychrome geometric patterns. This fetish with a dorsal orifice ...


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180.00  90.00