Tribal Art

This type of seat, a symbol of power that can here serve as a table or pedestal table, was frequently used as a pedestal for mankishi (sing. nkishi) fetishes. A female subject wearing a Kifwebe mask supports the circular tray. These seats were sometimes charged with a bishimba at the level of the head, the umbilicus or in the base. Brown patina nuanced with ocher, small accidents.
In the south-west of the Congo, and in Angola and Zambia, each chief had a seat with a female caryatid, an image of fecundity and fertility and of matrilineal descent. The Songye came from the Shaba region in the DRC and settled between the Lualaba River and the Sankuru River in the middle of savannah and forests. They are governed by the yakitenge and by local chiefs. Lit. : "The Sensible and the ...

African headrests come in an almost infinite variety: this type of African headrest, at the same time a stool, has a dark glossy patina. This massive block with a gently curved oval top was probably made by the Sidama or Gurage people of southern and southwestern Ethiopia. The latter are among the eighty ethnic groups in Ethiopia who produced various neck rests for individual use called yagerteras, or "pillows of my country" or "Boraati" ("tomorrow you").
Slight cracks.
Over time, the realization becoming more complex until becoming real small masterpieces of sculpture, they also became individual objects of prestige and power, placed on family or collective altars. These objects were initially intended to protect the elaborate hairstyles of their owner (man or woman) ...

Among the elements of African furniture for daily use, a mossi stool from the Ivory Coast, whose circular seat is supported by five diamond-shaped legs. This type of stool for individual use, often carved in shea wood, marked the social rank of its owner and was not suitable in any way. Patina of use, desication cracks, erosions.
The Mossi are a people originating from Burkina Faso as well as the bordering regions of surrounding countries. More than five million people consider themselves Mossi, membership in this ethnic community being based on the practice of moré and on the practice of a certain number of traditions. In the 15th and 16th centuries, they constituted great kingdoms, the two main ones of which (Yatenga and Ouagadougou) remained independent until European ...

Old stool seat evoking the mythical arch of the Dogon creation. A metal staple consolidates the structure. The decoration of the blanks presents subjects associated with the Nommos ancestors. Velvety matte patina, abrasions and desication cracks.
According to the Dogon cosmogony, the first primordial ancestors of Dogon, called Nommo, were the bisexual water gods. They were created in heaven by the creator god Amma and descended from heaven to earth in an ark.
The Nommo is said to have founded the eight lineages of Dogon and instilled weaving, the art of blacksmithing, and the agriculture to their human descendants.
Ref. : "Dogon" H. Leloup, ed. Quai Branly Museum.

Assembly of logs with tenons for this rectangular seat whose figurative motifs refer to the statues ntadep, tadep.
Polychrome patina, cracks.
Despite their small number, the thirty thousand Mambila (or Mambila, Mambere, Nor, Torbi, Lagubi, Tagbo, Tongbo, Bang, Ble, Juli, Bea)(the "men", in Fulani), settled in the northwest of Cameroon, created a large number of masks and statues easily identified by their heart-shaped faces. Although the Mambila believe in a creator god named Chang or Nama, they only worship their ancestors. Their leaders were buried in granaries like wheat as they were believed to symbolize prosperity. Masks and statues were not to be seen by women.

This large carved seat where the seat rests on the back of an aquine figure forms a rare piece. It is embellished with large polychrome motifs. Patina glossed by use on the supporting areas, some cracks of desication.
Mêlés aux Nalu and Landuman , the Baga live along the coasts of Guinea-Bissau in areas of swamps flooded six months a year. These Baga groups based on the coast and living from rice farming are made up of seven subgroups, including the Baga Kalum, Bulongic, Baga sitem, Baga Mandori, etc. They believe in a creative god called Nagu, Naku, which they do not represent, and which is accompanied by a male spirit whose name is Somtup. Apart from the famous Nimba mask, they have created a powerful mask, hybrid snake, gazelle, chameleon and crocodile, with the aim of ...

Recognisable for its sophisticated hairstyle and linear scarifications made up of checkerboards, this Tabwa ancestor figure is depicted seated, presenting the tablet forming the seat of a seat. Beautiful black oil patina, desication cracks. Abrasions.
The Tabwa ('scarifier' and 'write') are an ethnic group present in the south-east of the DRC, around Lake Tanganyika. The tribes of this region, such as the Tumbwe , worship the ancestors mipasi through sculptures held by chiefs or sorcerers. the Tabwa united around tribal leaders after being influenced by the Luba. It was mainly during this period that their artistic current was expressed mainly through statues but also through masks. The Tabwa worshipped ancestors and dedicated some of their statues to them. Animists, their beliefs ...

Mangbetu African tribal art, a prestigious art, was intended for the elite of society, such as this solid seat whose back features a bust. The seat is covered with animal skin, lustrous by use, the contours trimmed with upholstery nails. Minor cracks and erosions.
Established in the forest in the northeast of Zaire, the Mangbetu kingdom expressed itself through architectural works that impressed European visitors in the 19th century. Their furniture, weapons, ornaments and statuary were imbued with a rare aesthetic quality. The Mangbetu story was indeed based on the refinement of his court but also on cannibalistic customs. King Mangbetu "Munza" was thus nicknamed "the cannibal king". The ethnologist G.A. Schweinfurth in 1870 described its refinement, while at the same time ...

Among the traditional sculptures reserved for dignitaries , this eroded seat that a figure embodying a clan ancestor or mythical hero supports. The statuette evokes the Songye and Hemba statues. Particularity of the Kusu, the face extending with a triangular beard.
Velvety surface.
Desiccation crack.
The Kusu settled on the left bank of the Lualaba have indeed borrowed the artistic traditions of the Luba and Hemba and possess a caste system similar to that of the Luba .  The Hemba on the other hand have settled in southeastern Zaire on the right bank of the Lualaba River. Once under the domination of the Luba , these farmers and hunters practice ancestor worship by means of effigies long attributed to the Luba. In this region, between the Bembe, Boyo, Hemba, ...

Located in the border region of Nigeria, the northwestern province of Cameroon, the Grassland is made up of several ethnic groups: Tikar, Anyang, Widekum, Chamba, Bamoun and Bamileke. Several centralized chiefdoms, or kingdoms, based on customary associations, secret societies, are organized around the Fon which has broad powers. Among The Bamilékés of Sudano-Bantous origin as well as in other ethnic groups, the art objects attested to the place of their owner in society. The seats, whose ornamentation varied according to social status, were carved for routine use or for meetings of the Customary Societies. Each of the Cameroonian kingdoms produces an art linked to the royal prestige of the Fon consisting of regal, various weapons and cult sculptures, this treasure being kept in a box ...

Beautiful glossy patina for the seat of this little old stool. Three large curved feet support the thick circular tray, the crack of which has been restored with a metal clip. Dark brown patina.
The Oromo are a people living in the Horn of Africa. They are found in Ethiopia and northern Kenya.
They began a pastoral migration to northern territories in the 15th century, facilitated by the ruptures caused by the conquests of Ahmed Gragn. During this process, they clump together and cultivate the local populations.

They are known for their stylized neck supports and generally have a nice symmetry.

Former prestigious anthropomorphic seat. Traditional patterns are alternately chiseled on the surface. The subject's pupils were originally encrusted with pearls. The circular seat is slightly concave, supported by an openwork base. Nuanced brown patina, erosions and abrasions of use.
In the southern coastal region of Tanzania, around Dar-es-Salaam, a relatively homogeneous group produced most of the artistic productions. It includes the Swahili, Kaguru, Doé, Kwéré, Luguru, Zaramo, Kami. Among these populations, the seats are thrones intended for the heads of lineage, each of them being under the protection of a tutelary spirit. These stools were set apart in shrines named kolelo, guarded by priests.

Several ethnic groups in the Ivory Coast have seats similar in design to this Dan stool, but it is distinguished by its carved decorative motifs and sculpted legs. The sculptor has preserved the natural shape of a branch for the back. Desiccation cracks, patina of use, dark, oiled.
For the Dan people of the Ivory Coast, also called Yacouba, two very distinct universes are opposed: that of the village, composed of its inhabitants and its animals, and that of the forest, its vegetation and the animals and spirits that inhabit it. In order for these spirits to establish themselves, a specific area of the forest is designated and always preserved outside the dan villages. Sacrifices are also required in order to communicate through these spirits. Different types of Dan masks have ...

This bed consists of a concave board established on four legs, a sculpted neck support acting as a pillow. The effigy in the round adorning the head of the bed probably represents the tribal chief Chibinda Ilunga, hunter and mythical hero, founder of the Chokwé ethnic group, wearing the cipenya-mutwe, the objects being decorated of this figure having a protective function. The contours are inlaid with upholstery nails.
Brown patina encrusted with ochre.
Native restorations. Desication erosions and cracks.
Peacefully settled in eastern Angola until the 16th century, the Chokwé were then subjected to the Lunda empire from which they inherited a new hierarchical system and the sacredness of power. Nevertheless, the Chokwé never fully adopted these new social and ...

Makonde four-legged stool-seat.
Within the equatorial regions of Central Africa, the craftsmen and artists are the "Mapuundi". The latter mainly carve ebony, in which they fashion prestigious seats that could be transformed into a chief enthronement support, or more modest, depending on the social rank of each. This seat was carved in a light wood. The seat is slightly concave, the elegant half-moon legs. The decoration consists of circle patterns. Beautiful golden beige and gray patina. Desication cracks, erosions. According to: " Black African seats from the Barbier-Mueller museum " ed. 5Continents.

Prestigious sculptures in African art. An African figure sports a Shankadi-like hairstyle. The subject would form the "receptacle of a deceased sovereign leader" (Luba, Roberts). The prominent scarifications converging towards the umbilicus, "center of the world" associated with the lineage, testify to notions of fertility. This miniature stool named lupona , or kioni ,kipona , kiona , depending on the source, constitutes the meeting point of the sovereign, his people, and protective spirits and ancestors, where past and present mingle symbolically and spiritually. It once formed the seat on which the king was enthroned. The seats were arranged on leopard skins during the investiture of the new leader. Only after sitting there did his speech take on a royal and divine character. Apart ...

The caryatid "receptacle of a deceased sovereign chief" (Luba, Roberts) supporting the top of this stool named lupona, or kioni or kipona, kiona, affirms the political role and spirituality of women in Luba society. This seat once formed the seat on which King mulopwe was enthroned. The seats were arranged on leopard skins during the investiture of the new leader. Only after sitting there did his speech take on a royal and divine character. Apart from these exceptional circumstances, the seats were not used and remained stored in undisclosed locations. Gray brown patina, erosions and losses.
The cradle of the Luba (Baluba in Chiluba) is Katanga, more precisely the region of the Lubu River. They were born of a secession from the Songhoy ethnic group. In the 16th century they created ...

Very low to allow women to be at the height of the fire to prepare meals, this stool has a curved rectangular seat, luster by use. Supported by four massive feet, it is adorned with a head and the posterior face of a body sculpted under the seat. Fault on one foot that does not threaten the stability of the object. Golden brown patina.
The Upper Volta, Burkina Faso since independence, is composed of the descendants of the invaders, horsemen who came from Ghana in the 15th century, named Nakomse, and Tengabibisi, descendants of the natives. Political power is in the hands of the Nakomsé, who assert their power through statues, while priests and religious leaders come from the Tengabisi, who use masks during their ceremonies. Animists, the Mossi worship a god who created Wendé. Each ...

Sacrality of the sculpted seats, prestige regalia, in primitive African art .
A female figure supporting the circular plate of a seat, forms the "receptacle of a deceased sovereign chief" (Luba, Roberts). This stool named lupona , or kioni, kipona , kiona , according to the sources, constitutes the meeting point of the sovereign, his people, and protective spirits and ancestors, where past and present are symbolically and spiritually mingled. It was once the seat on which the king was enthroned. The seats were arranged on leopard skins when the new leader was inaugurated. It was only after being seated there that his address assumed a royal and divine character. Apart from these exceptional circumstances, the seats were not used and remained stored in secret places. ...

Mangbetu African art, a prestigious art, was intended for the elite of society, such as this articulated chair whose studs are carved with anthropomorphic figures and faces. The seat, attached to the wood by a tapestry nail but from which it stands out on the upper left corner, is animal skin and has been restored. The brown patina is abraded locally, updating a light wood.
In the forest in northeastern Zaire, the Mangbetu kingdom has expressed itself through architectural works that impressed European visitors in the 19th century. Their furniture, weapons, adornments and statuary were imbued with a rare aesthetic quality. The Mangbetu story was based on the refinement of his court but also on cannibalistic customs. King Mangbetu Munza was so dubbed The cannibal king. The ...

These wooden horns, once ivory elephant tusks, framed the throne on which the king sat during his weekly meetings with the people. Beaded, open sections, or sculpted with relief decorative motifs follow one another on the ensemble. Figures of buffalo heads, lizards or caimans, and royal effigies and dignitaries refer to the hierarchy of bamoun and bamileke society and to the prestige and wealth of the region. Zoomorphic figures are associated with the divination, power and qualities expected of the sovereign.
Lustrous mingable, fine desication cracks.
Situated in the border region of Nigeria, the northwestern province of Cameroon , the Grassland is made up of several ethnic groups: Tikar, Anyang, Widekum, Chamba, Bamoun and Bamileke. Several centralized chiefdoms, or ...