Tribal Art

These primitive coins in the shape of a large hoe, in large format, were used for offerings, as a wedding dowry and of course for major festive and ceremonial occasions. The Anga tribes of the Jos plateau in northern Nigeria offered this type of object as a dowry to the father of the future wife. These coins also had a ceremonial function during the celebration of the union. However, some attribute these particular shaped coins to the Afos, a neighboring tribe established below the Jos plateau. The Afos speak a Benue-Congolese language: Eyoli. Two parts stand out, a narrow handle and the lower part of a rectangular shape called the shovel shape which is also found in the Mambilas.
The oxidation of old iron offers a grainy orange patina.

This blade is extended with a wooden pommel surrounded by a leather ribbon and then dyed black. The end of the blade flares. Oxidized metal, very beautiful patina of use.
The Mongo group living in northwestern Congo, is known for its costumes, weapons, and metal jewelry, not for its almost non-existent statuary. The Konda who used this type of short swords form one of the tribes of the group.
In Africa, before the colonial period, payments were never made in coins. Transactions were made using cauris, pearls, cattle, kola nuts, but also metals, including iron in particular. These primitive currencies were used in trade, social exchanges, for dowries in particular, but could also come from parade objects or throw weapons. In Sierra Leone, goods were valued against iron bars ...

Ce type d'objets en métal, nommé Suu ou encor So, était utilisé comme moyen de paiement (point par exemple) dans la partie nord-est du Nigéria, et dans certains groupes à l'Ouest du Cameroun.
Epaisse patine croûteuse ocrée.
Population d'origine bantoue établie au sud-est du Nigéria, mais également au nord-ouest du Cameroun frontalier, près des Mfunte (ou Wuli) des Grasslands, les Mambila (" les hommes" en fulani), qui tirent leur subsistance de l 'agriculture et de l'élevage, ont produit des statues incarnant les ancêtres, associées à la fertilité et la prospérité, et des masques-heaumes pour les cérémonies clôturant la saison des semailles. Les objets cultuels des Mambila, utilisés par les nombreuses et puissantes associations initiatiques, participaient en outre aux ...

These primitive coins in the shape of a large hoe, in large format, were used for offerings, as a wedding dowry and of course for major festive and ceremonial occasions. The Anga tribes of the Jos plateau in northern Nigeria offered this type of object as a dowry to the father of the future wife. These coins also had a ceremonial function during the celebration of the union. However, some attribute these particular shaped coins to the Afos, a neighboring tribe established below the Jos plateau. The Afos speak a Benue-Congolese language: Eyoli. Two parts stand out, a narrow handle and the lower part of a rectangular shape called the shovel shape which is also found in the Mambilas.
The oxidation of old iron offers a grainy orange patina.

This piece of exceptional magnitude is reminiscent of throw knives in its shape, but the large ring attached to it forms a rare association. By its volume and weight, it is therefore a prestigious coin of great monetary value for the groups that have forged it and therefore intended for major exchanges. Decorated with thin hatches and small circles regularly engraved on the surface, it also offers a thick handle surrounded by a metal spiral like a rope. Before the arrival of the Europeans, the 'copper bars' (often composed of a spiral-shaped copper and zinc alloy) formed the only currency in Central Africa. These volutes, depending on the region, were named mitako or ngelo .

The final aesthetic aspect of this coin dictated our choice for this particular arrangement on its ...

Paleocurrencies in African art
Voluminous circular metal adornment whose points form the points.
Height on base: 44 cm.
This type of object taken could also be used as money during social transactions, for the dowry for example. In Africa, before the colonial period, payments were never made in coins. The transactions take place by means of cowries, pearls, cattle, kola nuts, but also metals, including iron more particularly. In Sierra Leone, goods were awarded against iron bars named barriferri. In 1556 in Djenné Jean-Léon the African observed that the populations used iron to pay for "things of little value". The king generally controlled the production or routing of the kingdom's currency. The variety of these metallic forms is wide, and these sometimes take on ...

Cephalomorphic sculpted ax, depicting a warrior's helmet from which springs a blade. Traditional patterns, linear and geometric, are engraved on the surface. Marks of use and abrasions.
Upper Volta, Burkina Faso since independence, is made up of the descendants of the invaders, riders 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 creator god named Wendé . Each individual would be endowed with a soul, sigha , linked to a totemic animal.

In African tribal art, throwing weapons and parade weapons were primitive currencies dedicated to commercial and social exchanges.
These objects in similar forms are found among the Gobu, the Mbugu, the Banda. According to the ethnic group the names vary: Bo, Nguindza or Guindza gbo as among the Banda.

Their shape places them in the category of "parade axes". Some more compact shapes also served as throwing knives.

The older ones will be made from a fairly light forged metal with a bare handle. The shapes and size vary from place to place.

This specimen has a handle entirely sheathed in copper wire, and the blade has discreet incisions and decorative hatching associated with human scarifications. The patina is grainy and velvety.

These primitive large hoe-shaped coins were used for offerings, wedding dowries, and of course for major festive and ceremonial occasions. The Angas tribes of the Jos Plateau in northern Nigeria offered such objects as dowries to the father of the bride-to-be. These coins also had a ceremonial function during the celebration of the union. Some people, however, attribute these specially shaped coins to the Afos, a neighboring tribe settled below the Jos plateau. The Afos speak a Benue-Congolese language: Eyoli. Two parts stand out, a narrow handle and the lower part of rectangular shape known as the shovel shape which is also found among the Mambilas.
The oxidation of the iron offers an inimitable patina.

Ex Dutch tribal art collection.
This time in the form of a circular tray with a long handle, this African coin would be associated with the prestige of Tikar chiefs. The handle is decorated with scrolls and spiral metal strips, the patina having adopted a beige tone shaded with rust oxidation. The Tikar inhabit the western part of central Cameroon which is located within the dense secondary mid-altitude forest along the Mbam. Within this ecotone, the "Tikar plain" (named after its occupants) constitutes a depression that backs up respectively to the west and north to the Mbam massif (and its Mapé and Kim tributaries) and the first foothills of the Adamaoua plateau. The structure of the kingdom consists of a large chiefdom subdivided into quarters: the residences of the queens, the ...

Ex-collection Belgian African art.
This knife with double-edged blades is fitted with a handle sheathed with animal fur, more precisely. A weapon of combat and prestige, it could also form an accessory appreciated during danced ritual ceremonies.
odies referred to as Niam-Niam because they are considered anthropophages, the tribes grouped under the name Zande, Azandé, settled from Chad on the border of the R.D.C. (Zaire), Sudan and the Central African Republic. According to their beliefs, man is endowed with two souls, one of whom turns into a totem animal of the clan to which he belongs. The African tribal art of the Zande, or those who own a lot of land, apart from their court art consisting of spoons, receptable pipes and harps, counts two types of statues: The Kudu statues ...