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Well known for white-faced masks (Okuyi), the ethnic group that this was acquired from (Mpongwe) has two separate uses for masks like this.
Costumed ceremonies include rites of passage and funerary events.
This mask was used for the later. The typical Okuyi performer wears a…
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- Item Number: M-3109
- Provenance/Origin: Ogooue River Region, Gabon. Circa 1970s
- Composition: Wood
- Dimensions: 14" tall x 8" wide x 4.5" deep
- Weight: 3.75 pounds
- Price: $ 165.00 USD
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Original pieces from ancient Egypt are almost impossible to acquire at a reasonable price. And there are the issues of importing, exporting, authentication and language.
With that said, here is an item that is old but not necessarily ancient.
Isis (aka Aset) – a major…
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- Item Number: M-1197
- Provenance/Origin: Luxor Egypt
- Composition: Stone with some coloring
- Dimensions: 7.5" tall x 5.5 wide x 2.5 deep
- Weight: 4 pounds
- Price: $ 180.00 USD
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The over 2 million Bamana people form the largest ethnic group in Mali and occupy the savannah in the central portion of the country. The Bamana (aka Bambara) kingdom was founded in the 17th Century and reached their height of power in the mid- to late-1700s.
The Marka…
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- Item Number: M-7539
- Provenance/Origin: Northern Mali. Circa 1940s - 1950s
- Composition: Wood
- Dimensions: 24.5" tall x 8 " wide x 7" deep
- Weight: 4.25 pounds
- Price: $ 190.00 USD
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The mythical deity – Garuda – has a ton of spiritual significance in Hinduism and Buddhism. In Hinduism, Garuda is most often found mounted on the back of Vishnu, as the god’s protector.
Here the Garuda – with a snake in its beak – symbolizes the…
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- Item Number: M-5924
- Provenance/Origin: Hindu and Buddhist figure. Handcrafted in Nepal. Recent.
- Composition: Bronze
- Dimensions: 14" wide x 9" tall
- Weight: 1.5 pounds
- Price: $ 245.00 USD
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I have run across a few of these “yawn” masks over the last few years and have not been impressed. But this one is different.
This is an artisan’s stunning interpretation of what is supposed to be a satisfying gesture. But with the wrinkled forehead, flared…
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- Item Number: M-8506
- Provenance/Origin: Bali. Circa 1960s.
- Composition: Hibiscus and horse hair
- Dimensions: 10.5 tall x 6" wide x 3.5" deep... none including the flowing hair
- Weight: 1 pound
- Price: $ 58.00 USD
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Rangda – a dramatic manifestation of the Goddess of the Underworld, Durga – is the demon queen of the Leyaks. Leyaks are spirit/ghost-like figures in Bali that appear as humans during the daylight but – at night – their head and entrails break off from their bodies…
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- Item Number: M-9901
- Provenance/Origin: Bali. Circa 1950s
- Composition: Hair, Wood, Cloth, Paint, Metalwork, Mirrors
- Dimensions: 48" long
- Weight: 3 pounds
- Price: $ 275.00 USD
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The Dan people – an ethnolinguistic grouping – has presence in the mountainous areas of Côte d’Ivoire and adjacent areas of Liberia. This particular mask is from Liberia and specifically used by the Poro . . . a secret society where only males are admitted.
As…
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- Item Number: M-1763
- Provenance/Origin: Dan. Liberia. Circa late-1900s
- Composition: Wood, shells, cord
- Dimensions: 10" tall x 6" wide (wooden mask only)
- Weight: 1.5 pounds
- Price: $ 195.00 USD
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The Senufo people – numbering between 1 to 1.5 million and aka Siena, Senefo, Sene, Senoufo, and Syénambélé – is a West African ethno-linguistic group consisting of diverse subgroups.
Their masks are varied with a range of materials.
By far the most profound and valuable are…
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- Item Number: M-0357
- Provenance/Origin: Côte d'Ivoire Ivory Coast. Circa 1950s or earlier
- Composition: Bronze
- Dimensions: Mask: 12" tall x 6.5" wide x 3" deep. Mask on Stand: 15"
- Weight: 2.75 pounds
- Price: $ 395.00 USD
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The Lulua people – who migrated from western Africa – are made up of small regional chiefdoms. They in turn often elect a common leader . . . a village chief.
Masks – like this one – are used in rituals and ceremonies related to agriculture,…
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- Item Number: M-2285
- Provenance/Origin: Bena Lulua people. Circa 1970s
- Composition: Wood and pigment
- Dimensions: 17" tall x 9.5" at widest x 8" deep
- Weight: 3.75 pounds
- Price: $ 232.00 USD
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Sharing stylistic traits with the Bamileke, Tikar and other Western Grassland Cameroon tribes, this particular mask illustrates the complexity of the transfer of styles… through migration and various artists’ interpretations… even as far back as the migrations of the 17th Century.
That is what makes this mask…
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- Item Number: M-4266
- Provenance/Origin: Cameroon. Bamileke / Bamun
- Composition: Wood, brass, cotton cloth, raffia / grasses
- Dimensions: 16" tall x 11" wide x 8" deep
- Weight: 5.75 pounds
- Price: $ 345.00 USD
