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A KUBA 'BULUP' DRUM, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO
Of elongated cylindrical shape slightly tapering towards the base, the percussion surface covered in animal skin, the top finely carved with elaborated geometric patterns, with a handle in the shape of a stylised hand, with a human face above, 70.5cm high
Provenance: French private collection, acquired in the 19th Century. With Ratton Hourdé, Paris, 2007. Accompanied by a letter of expertise and photograph from Ratton Hourdé, dated 17 March 2007.
£500-700
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A YAKA SITTING FIGURE, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO
With typical cap-like coiffure, with both elbows resting on the knees, both hands supporting the head, 56cm high
£200-300
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A SONGYE POWER FIGURE, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO
Depicted pregnant, holding the belly with both hands, with a horn inserted at the top of the head, wearing a blue bead necklace, 73cm high
£200-300
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A NGALA EXECUTION KNIFE, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO
The typical sickle-shaped blade with punched geometric decoration, the handle formed by metal wire coiled around the lower end of the blade, with a double-cone shaped wooden pommel, 67cm long
Provenance: English private collection, acquired in Kisangani in 1940.
£150-250
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AN OVAMBO 'FISHTAIL' DAGGER, NAMIBIA
With wood 'hourglass'-shaped hilt and wood openwork scabbard with typical 'fishtail' terminal, the leaf-shaped iron blade with mid-rib, 55cm long
£100-150
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TWO BILLAO SWORDS, SOMALIA
With double-edged blade, on a buffalo horn and metal hilt with large flat three-pronged pommel, both 57cm long (2)
Provenance: English private collection, acquired prior to 1940.
£150-250
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THREE DAGGERS, SUDAN OR CHAD
The hilt and sheath decorated in leather, 27cm-39.5cm long (3)
£40-60
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FOUR MASAI GOURD FLASKS, KENYA
The largest a Kamba calabash decorated with incised geometric motifs and two buffalos; two others with leather strap and lid, with old repairs, 23cm-33.5cm high (4)
Provenance: Deceased estate of Anthony Jack, tribal art dealer in Portobello, London.
Literature: decorating calabashes with incised designs was a popular art form amongst the Masai, which then went into decline from the 1920s. Peter Nzuki, a contemporary artist at the National Museum of Kenya, worked to revive this art form and is now exhibited in museums worldwide. For a published example of his work cf. C.E. Mayer and A. Shelton, The Museum of Anthropology at the University of British Columbia, 2009, p.128.
£80-120
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THREE NDEBELE BEADWORK PANELS, SOUTH AFRICA
Including two traditional 'isiphephetu' maiden aprons, the rectangular cotton panel decorated with geometric motifs of polychrome miniature beadwork, 31cm x 29cm and 43cm x 31cm; and another traditional dancing skirt part of the marriage costume, with large fringes at the bottom edge and polychrome miniature beadwork geometric decoration, 61cm x 39.5cm (3)
Literature: Beadwork is of paramount importance in the life of South African tribes, in particular the one of women who are the only makers of such ceremonial garments. Every stage of female life, from initiation rites to marriage, is associated to traditional costumes decorated with multi-coloured glass beads.
£200-300
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A TONGA WOOD GRANARY DOOR, ZIMBAWE
Decorated on one side with bands of zigzag and chevrons in bas relief, with two long hinges, 118cm x 37cm
£100-200
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TWO CAMEL SKIN WATER OR OIL CONTAINERS, ARABIAN PENINSULA
Decorated with applied paper cut-outs forming floral and geometric motifs, 15.5cm and 42cm high (2)
£40-60
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A MAKONDE WOOD CARVING, TANZANIA
Depicting a seated woman carrying firewood over her head, 101cm high; and five other African treen carvings (6)
£100-150
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A WOOD FIGURE, KATHMANDU VALLEY, NEPAL
Depicting two female figures, possibly twins, wearing long pleated skirts, necklace and large earrings, holding hands, 16cm high
Provenance: English private collection, purchased at Spink and Son Ltd. in the mid-1980s.
£300-500
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A SHAMANIC WOOD MASK, NEPAL
Naturalistically carved, with pierced eyes and mouth, bold with slender nose, detailed ears and part of the neck, 29cm high
Literature: the naturalistic features of this mask suggest that it represents an ancestor rather than a demon or spirit.
£500-700
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AN IFUGAO MALE STANDING 'BULUL' FIGURE, PHILIPPINES
Standing nude, with stylised facial features, bringing both hands to the phallus, 42.5cm high
£100-150
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A BATAK STYLE WOOD STOOL, INDONESIA
In heavy tropical wood, the four legs in the shape of male figures wearing a loincloth, with inlaid eyes, both arms raised to support the round seat, another reinforcement disc below, 49.5cm high
£300-400
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A BALINESE WOOD WAYANG WONG MASK, INDONESIA
Depicted a demon with large bulbous nose, round eyes and grinning mouth with long canine teeth, 19cm high
£80-120
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A TOBA BATAK WOOD RICE GRANARY DOOR, INDONESIA
Decorated with the relief carving of a gecko, painted in black, the body pierced to hold the bolt, 92cm x 60cm
Literature: the gecko or lizard is a recurrent symbol across Indonesia, often placed over doors as the guardian of the house and fertility symbol. For the use of the gecko symbol on the cover of a pustaha, the Batak divination book, in the Fred and Rita Richman Collection, cf. F.H. Capistrano-Baker, Art of Island South East Asia, pl.25, p.57.
£200-300
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A COLLECTION OF WEAPONS, PAPUA NEW GUINEA AND INDONESIA
Including bamboo barbed spears, a bow and four knives with sheaths, 23cm-169cm (19)
Provenance: English private collection, Mr B.M. (1939-2014), acquired whilst travelling on his sailboat between Indonesia and Australia in the 1960s-1970s.
£80-120
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A SEPIK HOUSE POST FIGURE, PAPUA NEW GUINEA
Carved in the shape of ancestor figure, with short legs, holding the long pointed nose with both hands, wearing a plumed headdress with the figure of a human-headed fish with two dorsal fins and bird-like wings, with remains of polychrome decoration, the figure framed by a light structure of bamboo to secure long thin feathers, 115cm high
Provenance: Private collection of a professor, collected in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea.
£300-500
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A WOOD ANCESTOR FIGURE, PAPUA NEW GUINEA
With inlaid cowrie shells for the eyes, wearing earrings, a necklace, and a raffia loincloth, 53cm high
£150-200
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A WOOD 'CULACULA' PADDLE CLUB, FIJI ISLANDS
The wide blade flaring towards the bottom, with mid-rib and fine carved geometric decoration of cross-hatching and zig-zag on both sides, 113cm long
Provenance: English family collection, acquired during WWI or WWII, thence by descent to the current owner.
£300-500
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A SHELL AND HARDSTONE FISH HOOK, SOLOMON ISLANDS
The curved shell hook attached with thread to the round corpus made from hardstone, pierced at the top, with a vegetable fibre net container, 5cm long
£200-300
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TWO ABORIGINAL THROWING CLUBS, AUSTRALIA
One plain with pointed terminals, tapering towards one end, 64.5cm long; and another with spherical head with projection, decorated with incised spiralling band with geometric motifs, 45cm long (2)
£100-150
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A POLYNESIAN CLUB
With long shaft and club head with slightly pointed knob, 57cm long
£50-80
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A MEZCALA GUERRERO STONE IDOL, MEXICO
Polished, of stylised form, the arms and legs marked by notches, the trapezoidal head with schematic mouth and eyes, 7cm high
£200-300
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FOUR MISCELLANEOUS ANCIENT FRAGMENTS
Including and Egyptian white glazed composition fragment of a concubine figure, showing the navel, Third Intermediate Period, circa 1069-702 B.C., 5cm long; two Chapicuaro terracotta fragments of a female figure and a male head, Mexico, 4cm-6cm long; and a terracotta head of Buddha, Thailand, 4.5cm long (4)
Provenance: London private collection, formed in the 1970s, thence by descent.
£150-200
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TWO TAIRONA BLACK SLIP POTTERY VESSELS, COLOMBIA
Including a vessel with angular shoulder and flaring neck on a ring foot, the shoulder decorated with two moulded frogs in relief, the head with protruding round eyes projecting upwards, 21cm high; and another example with double necks joined by an overarching handle, decorated with two ropes in relief at the base of each neck, 20.5cm high (2)
Provenance: UK private collection, acquired on the London art market in the early 1990s.
Literature: for a similar example of double-spouted vessel, cf. A. J. Labbe', Colombia before Columbus, 1986, p.188, pl.154.
£100-200
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TWO NARINO POTTERY PEDESTAL BOWLS, COLOMBIA OR ECUADOR
Circa 800-1600 A.D.
The hemispherical bowls on flaring high foot, decorated with red slip on the interior, the exterior in black with white geometric motifs, the rim with incised notches at regular intervals, 12.5cm-13.5cm high
Provenance: UK private collection, acquired on the London art market in the early 1990s.
£80-120
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A MOCHE STIRRUP VESSEL, PERU
The body in the shape of a mythical figure half human and half owl, with the large round eyes and folded wings, holding a staff with the right hand and resting the left hand inside a bag, wearing a long tunic and belt, with long cylindrical spout and strap handle, 18cm high
Provenance: London private collection, formed in the 1970s, thence by descent.
Literature: for similar examples of stirrup vessels in the shape of a human-owl hybrid in the collection of the Museo Rafael Larco Herrera in Lima, cf. inv. No. ML003763 and ML003762.
£200-300
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TWO MOCHE TEXTILE FRAGMENTS, PERU
Including a tunic fragment, composed of a band of geometric pattern at the top and another band of stylised birds in a row at the bottom, both with fringed borders, the central neutral panel divided by narrow vertical red bands with stylised birds wearing a feather headdress, 78cm x 60cm; and a bag with long fringes at the bottom, decorated with vertical bands of blue and white geometric pattern on neutral background, 41cm x 55cm, mounted in a frame of 81cm x 95cm (2)
£100-200
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A CHIMU BLACKWARE DOUBLE VESSEL, PERU
The two bodies decorated in relief with concentric bands of geometric patterns, the cylindrical spout linked by a bridge handle to the other terminal moulded in the shape of a human figure with over-sized head and horned headdress, holding a bird, 23cm high
Provenance: English private collection since 1998, formally in a Spanish private collection.
£150-250
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A CHIMU BLACKWARE DOUBLE VESSEL, PERU
The two bodies decorated in relief with burrs and a feline, possibly a jaguar, the conical spout linked by a bridge handle to the other terminal moulded in the shape of a human figure with typical headdress holding a basket, 24.5cm high
Provenance: English private collection since 1998, formally in a Spanish private collection.
£200-300
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A CHIMU BLACKWARE DOUBLE VESSEL, PERU
The two bodies decorated in relief with geometric patterns of circles and zig zag, the conical spout linked by a bridge handle to the other terminal moulded in the shape of a human figure with over-sized head and horned headdress, holding a child to her chest, 23cm high
Provenance: English private collection since 1998, formally in a Spanish private collection.
£200-300
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THREE CARVED YERBA MATE GOURDS, ARGENTINA OR BRAZIL
Finely carved with geometric and floral motifs, one with applied metal plaque over the rim, with flowers in repoussé, and terminal on the thumb-rest in the shape of a perching bird, with Victorian collection label on the bottom, the straws now missing, 6.5cm-8cm high (3)
Provenance: English private collection. Collected circa 1882 by surgeon-Captain J. Dunlop, Royal Navy (1845-1905).
£200-300
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