Textiles, Adornment & Personal Objects

« Inquire About This Item » Throughout Africa traditional crowns and headgear employ feathers as integral decorative elements. Colorful, lightweight, and readily available, feathers are the perfect material to give scale, animation, and drama to hats and wigs. In this crown, worn by Tikar palace dancers in association with the beaded textile elephant masks, the tail feathers of the African grey parrot are arrayed at the tips of scores of cloth-encased reeds to command attention. There is absolutely no augmentation with dyed feathers. A single black feather from a standard-winged nightjar graces the center of the hat. It is an unusual feature not found in most such headdresses and is among the details that make this the most exceptional example of this type of crown I have seen. The crown collapses upon itself for storage with the tug of a leather loop in the center of the bottom woven-fiber portion of the headdress. 26" diameter. Price on request. « Inquire About This Item » View Number 2 « Inquire About This Item » View Number 3	« Inquire About This Item » This blouse is embroidered on stitched-together strips of indigenous Wodabe indigo-dyed cotton, plus two strips of striped Hausa trade cloth. All embroidery, stitching, and weaving is by hand with the exception of the ticking on the collar and hem, which are imported bleached material. Wodabe looms were traditionally very narrow, producing gauzy strips about 3 cm wide. This small blouse, 9" across and 12" long, would have been made to fit a young girl, 8 to 10 years old. It was collected by Boubacar Doubou in the late 1980s. It dates from the 1970s or before. The colors are strong, natural, and harmonious. The embroidery is of the highest quality, displaying a variety of traditional designs associated with the Gerewol Festival. The quality of Wodabe embroidery is steadily declining. More recent works are less finely stitched, less orderly, and sparser in detail. Dyed trade cloth is replacing the traditional backing of assembled hand loom strips. The decline can readily be seen by comparing field photographs of the Gerewol Festival shot in the 1970s, 1980s, and since 2000. Unmounted. $900.	« Inquire About This Item » This elegant Kalabari torque dates from before European contact. It has been expertly wrought from a single contiguous length of solid copper. Its rich, luminous green patina is the result of centuries of interaction with its environment. Substantial incising can be seen on the bulbous ends. It is 8" in diameter and comes mounted on a custom base. Price on request.	« Inquire About This Item » Before the advent of European trade in the 16th century, hand-beaten copper coils did double duty as currency and jewelry in what is today southeastern Nigeria. The Portuguese and, later, the British introduced bronze and brass initially in the form of bars, ingots, and wire, but later in cast bracelets and ready-to-use forms as well. Europeans also introduced manufactured steel in order to barter for ivory and other valuables from the interior. This trade effectively ended the ancient practice of hand forging copper. 9.5" long. $700 each, unmounted; $750, mounted.	« Inquire About This Item » Wooden sandals were in use in East Africa throughout the 20th century. With the introduction of mass market footwear and the ubiquitous rubber thong, their popularity went into swift decline. This pair dates from before 1950 and, quite possibly, as early as 1910. The toe pegs with their onion-shaped finials are typical for Gogo sandals and show a strong Indo-Arab influence. Across the Indian Ocean, strikingly similar footwear was worn in Orissa. Pyro decoration is common in East and Southern African art. Here, the outer edge of the sandal has been outlined in this way with a circle inscribed in the middle. The design is bold and unusual. This pair would look great hung on a wall. 9" long, each. $700.
« Inquire About This Item » Up until the beginning of the last century the wearing of goatskins by both men and women was widespread in rural Kenya. Over time fashions and materials evolved. What distinguished the diverse tribes was not so much the type of garment but the means of adornment, the colors chosen and the patterns employed. The Kamba were renowned for their wide and precisely patterned aprons dominated by small white beads. The use of chain and coins was widespread. The pennies adorning this fine example are from British East Africa and date from the 1920s through the mid 1950s. 7" high x 11.5" wide. Glass beads, cotton yarn, sisal, copper alloy chain, and vintage coins. Price on request.	« Inquire About This Item » This knitted cotton cap is identified as Bamun by Cameroonian merchants. Related Grassfield peoples wear very similar hats, so it's possible that it may be more properly identified with one of these neighboring groups. Such hats would have been daily men's attire in the past, but are now worn mostly at festivities such as weddings and meetings of the royal court, where traditional notions of status and rank are on display. This cap is in excellent condition, showing wear consistent with its use. It probably dates from the middle of the 20th century. 7" tall, not including the mount. Price on request. « Inquire About This Item » View Number 2	« Inquire About This Item » This flamboyant crown is made from the pelt of the eastern highland guereza colobus monkey, cow hide, and cowrie shells. Colobus fur is prized by many Central and East African people for its flowing length and for its striking black and white contrasts. (The monkey is common and its meat is considered a delicacy.) The Nyaturu live in Singida District in the center of Tanzania. 6" wide, on a custom wood base. Price upon request. « Inquire About This Item » View Number 2 « Inquire About This Item » View Number 3	« Inquire About This Item » Up until the beginning of the last century the wearing of goatskins by both men and women was widespread in Kenya. What distinguished the diverse tribes was not so much the type of garment but the means of adornment, the colors chosen and the patterns and combinations of beadwork. The Kamba were renowned for their wide and precisely patterned aprons dominated by small white beads and the use of trade chain and coins. The pennies employed in this fine example are from British East Africa and date from the 1920s up through the mid 1950s. 11.45" x 14" long in Price on request « Inquire About This Item » View Number 2	« Inquire About This Item » This beautiful and well worn cache sexe was collected by an American woman while teaching in a village in Nigeria's northeast in the early 60s. The teacher purchased this cache-sexe after having seen a dancer wearing it in a village ceremony. After returning to the United States, she hung it on the wall of her home until her death in 2007. Unfortunately, her executors did not know the name of the village or region where she had resided. 8.5" high x 12" wide. Glass beads, cowrie shells and cotton yarn with some indigenous repair. Price on request.
« Inquire About This Item » A vibrantly colored and well worn cache sexe collected by an American woman while teaching in a village in Nigeria's northeast in the early 60s. The repeat diamond pattern is kept lively with surprising elements and asymmetrical modifications to the design. The teacher purchased this cache-sexe after having seen it danced. After returning to the United States, she hung it on the wall of her home until her death in 2007. Unfortunately, her executors did not know the name of the village or region where she had resided. 9" high x 12" wide. Glass beads, cowrie shells and cotton yarn with some indigenous repair. Price on request.	« Inquire About This Item » This lovely and well used cache sexe was collected by an American woman while teaching in a village in Nigeria's northeast in the early 60s. It is unusual for its petite size, asymmetrical design, beautiful old beads and triangular shape. It purchased this after the teacher witnesses a girl dance with it at a village ceremony. Unfortunately, the name of the village or region where it was collected was not recorded. 6" high x 4.5" wide. Glass beads, time-worn cowrie shells and cotton yarn with indigenous repairs. Price on request.	« Inquire About This Item » This beautifully preserved Karamajong headdress was purchased from an estate sale in England. The original owner had probably spent considerable time in Uganda prior to that country's independence in 1962 because the lot included numerous Ugandan artifacts, including some decorated with colonial coins dating from before 1956. Karamajong headdresses are essentially wigs and they come in a wide variety of forms. This type, with the fore-section made of unfired clay and pigment, is called an "emedot". The colors, pattern, and form denote the wearer's clan and social status. Human hair, wire, clay, pigments, and ostrich feathers. 8" long x 4.5" wide. Price upon request. « Inquire About This Item » View Number 2	« Inquire About This Item » A colorful example of a rarely seen headdress from the Mbudu of eastern Congo. The front panel of finely arranged beads is sewn to woven raffia cloth dotted with earth pigments and decorated with the feathers of bush fowl. The headdress is similar to the nkaka of the nearby Tabwa worn by celebrants of the bulumbu cult and to headbands of Luba mbudye diviners, which feature similar triangular motifs. 7" x 5". Price upon request. « Inquire About This Item » View Number 2 « Inquire About This Item » View Number 3	« Inquire About This Item » The West African lute or Ngoni comes in a variety of sizes. This smaller sized instrument is known as the kamale (young man's) ngoni popularized in the 1960s through the evolution of the Wousolou sound. However, this example predates that pop movement. It is similar to the Fulani hoddu, the Tuareg tahardant and other related instruments found across the Sahel. This family of instruments, characterized by a straight neck and a hollow wood or calabash body wrapped in drum-tight goat skin, is thought to be the ancestor of the American banjo. The beautiful old example on offer here no longer has strings but their absence allows us to see it as an expressive face. Considering its age the instrument is in excellent shape. There is some loss to the bindings in one corner of the back side although this in no way does detracts from the overall appearance. Mounted vertically on a custom wood and metal base. $850 « Inquire About This Item » View Number 2 « Inquire About This Item » View Number 3
« Inquire About This Item » This set is relatively lightweight as the individual bands were made by tightly winding fine wire onto a rod then slipping the resultant coil free and fashioning it end-to-end into a loop with a hollow core. The craftsmanship here is uniformly excellent. The patina shows years of use and exposure. Mounted on a custom base. 12" long; $650. See also Zulu leg rings (shown together in second image). « Inquire About This Item » View Number 2	« Inquire About This Item » This set is relatively lightweight as the individual bands were made by tightly winding fine wire onto a rod then slipping the resultant coil free and fashioning it end-to-end into a loop with a hollow core. The craftsmanship here is uniformly excellent. The patina shows years of use and exposure. Mounted on a custom base. 12" long; $650. See also Zulu arm rings.	« Inquire About This Item » It seems unfair to call this massive carving a bracelet. It's so large that one edge has been deliberately carved concave to allow it to be worn more comfortably against their wearer's side. The object was discovered some years ago in a collection of Bijogo ceremonial regalia, mostly dance crests. It it adze carved, very dry and bears trays of white pigment. 12" diameter on a custom base. $1200 « Inquire About This Item » View Number 2 « Inquire About This Item » View Number 3	« Inquire About This Item » Verre snuff bottles are relatively common and nearly always brass, sometimes with leather or chain attachments. Here the form is identical to brass snuffs but the materials are organic and lightweight. The interior may be a hollowed nut or possibly wood. The exterior is all leather and displays very fine craftsmanship. 3.5" tall. $475	« Inquire About This Item » Not only is this armlet longer (14") and more open than is typical of archeological Cross River coils it is also especially well formed and in immaculate condition. It is fabricated from stock which is triangular in cross-section rather than the more common circular rod. The perfectly round, slim and elegant finials are incised with geometric designs. In scale, condition, color, form and craftsmanship this is as fine an example as one is likely to find. A similar one, 9.5" in length and cleaned of it's archeological patina is illustrated in Marc Ginzberg's excellent book, "African Forms". It sold at auction in 2007 (Sotheby's Paris, September 10th). 15th century $3500. « Inquire About This Item » View Number 2
« Inquire About This Item » Caps of this sort, called ashetu, are reserved by the Bamileke for kings (fons) and high ranking men. The design echoes a traditional hairstyle frequently depicted in Bamileke sculpture but long since out of fashion. About 7"h x 6"w. « Inquire About This Item » View Number 2	« Inquire About This Item » This colorful headdress is identical to one illustrated in Paul Gebauer's art of Cameroon page 121. According to the text such crests were carried by messengers on royal errands. The raffia is dyed by boiling it with the extracts of kola nuts. The substructure is crocheted coarse string which when turned inside out ingeniously incases the raffia for safe-keeping much like similar Bamileke hats with plumed superstructures. 17"h x 22"w. $1000 mounted. « Inquire About This Item » View Number 2	« Inquire About This Item » This hat was purchased from the estate of a American woman who devoted several decades of her life to the service of a mission hospital near Kikwit, Congo, formerly Zaire, beginning in the 1950s. It is in immaculate condition. All materials are derived from the bush. The structure is hand twisted and crocheted raffia palm fiber. The knobs are made up of bundled n'simbu a type of snail shell formerly traded throughout the region as currency. 6" diameter and about 5" high. On a custom base. $800 « Inquire About This Item » View Number 2 « Inquire About This Item » View Number 3	« Inquire About This Item » A variety of hats and headdresses are worn by Zulu women and traditional ceremonies and gatherings. Circular, flat-topped hats made from a variety of materials including cotton and occasionally human hair are among the best known. Bundles of sweet grass, bush fiber or washed rags are often used to fill the hat out and give it shape. The headdress illustrated here is a rare variation of the flat topped hair hat. The shape and materials are the same: human hair over a circle of recycled cloth, red ochre, animal fat and fiber stuffing. However, the top is pillowed and in profile there are no edges and the sides are convex. 12" diameter. Mounted at a jaunty angle on a custom stand. Price on request « Inquire About This Item » View Number 2 « Inquire About This Item » View Number 3	« Inquire About This Item » The felt fez was introduced into Nigeria through trade with the Arab north. Here an natural, undyed fez of Nigerian manufacture has been heavily decorated with cowrie shells. Cowries were recognized early on by humanity of shells of value. They are uniform, can be easily modified for stringing and they have anthropomorphic qualities as they call to mind the human eye and the female sex. For thousands of years cowries were traded around the world. They adorned the wealthy and powerful. They decorated masks and were pasted into the eyes of figurative carvings. In this hat they announce the special status of its wearer as someone linked to history and the mystical power of nature. 8" Price on request « Inquire About This Item » View Number 2
« Inquire About This Item » The Verre are an agricultural people living on a high plateau in Adamawa State in Northeast Nigeria. They are famous for their fine lost wax produced brassware but as the Verre population is only 125,000 it seems likely that at least some goods attributed to them rightfully belong to their various neighbors with whom they may share traditions and common ancestry or historical origins. As the neighboring tribes are numerous and largely unknown outside of their immediate environment it is understandable that merchants trading in art would simplify the identifications of their finds. Be that as it may this is a lovely old pipe bowl, finely detailed with a miniature phallus and exquisitely cast. It's time worn surface and oxidized patina testify to its age and history as a long treasured possession. On a custom base. Price on request. « Inquire About This Item » View Number 2 « Inquire About This Item » View Number 3 « Inquire About This Item » View Number 4	« Inquire About This Item » According to Angela Fisher's fabulous book Africa Adorned Wodabe mothers traditionally give their daughters pairs of such anklets or jabo in order to attract men. Eligible young women (surbaajo) sport two to three pairs of the heavy brass anklets during Wodabe festivals when the nomads gather in sizable numbers. The Wodabe commission the anklets from Hausa craftsmen who incise them with requested designs. It is rare to find even one pair as the anklets are often sold singly by exporters. This pair shows years of use. The bright color of the exterior patina is the result of repeated polishing with water, wet ash and sand. 6" lengths and 5" diameters. Field image by Angela Fisher. Price on request « Inquire About This Item » View Number 2 « Inquire About This Item » View Number 3 « Inquire About This Item » View Number 4	« Inquire About This Item » A number of divers ethnic groups cumulatively described as Kirdi live in the rugged mountains of northeast Cameroon. They are farmers who adhere to traditional beliefs, initiating their youth to adulthood and celebrating their harvest with ceremonies and dances. This crown is worn by young women during one such ceremony. In addition to glass trade beads and imported cowrie shells the crown features a line of ersatz lion claws locally fabricated by a blacksmith from raw steel. This is an especially fine and well preserved example of a rare Kirdi head ornament. 8" diameter. Mounted on a custom stand. Price on request. « Inquire About This Item » View Number 2 « Inquire About This Item » View Number 3	« Inquire About This Item » The Lugbara live in western Uganda, close to the equator. The sun is strong and region experiences frequent downpours during its two rainy seasons. Like most African societies Lugbara women carry their infants on their backs while working in the fields and performing their near constant chores. To protect them from the elements, Lugbara women traditionally covered their infants with woven hoods such as this, tucking the broad flat end into the wrappers that bound their babies tight against them. A different variety of hood also exists without the top-hat finial. These are lighter in color and lack the application of brownish resin that make these hoods particularly water resistant. Neither form have ever been in great supply but the ones with the finial appear to be substantially older. The scoop-like form may be related to rain-gear employed by some groups of forest dwelling pygmies who live in the vicinity: a folding of large fronds that makes a head to waist hood that stays in place through gravity and leaves the hands free. A nearly identical example is illustrated in Marc Ginzberg's "African Forms". 20" long, 10" wide", price on request « Inquire About This Item » View Number 2 « Inquire About This Item » View Number 3 « Inquire About This Item » View Number 4	« Inquire About This Item » I have only ever seen one other example of this curious object which I can only imagine must be a doll. It consists of a heavily decorated miniature basketry hood identical in form, weave and material to one of two types of baby covers employed by the Lugbara of western Uganda. It was purchased in a lot with a variety of vintage ethnographic objects readily identifiable as of Ugandan origin. The coins adorning the hood's perimeter identify themselves as British East African pennies of the 1950s. The long strands of beads appear intended to facilitate the carriage of the hood on a girl's back or shoulder. This is not to say that this beautiful piece was merely a toy; it may well have been worn by adolescents during a rite of passage, by adult women hoping to conceive or for any of the many purposes and reasons that dolls were and are employed in traditional African societies. The main part is 7" x 4" with an over all length of 19". Mounted, price on request. « Inquire About This Item » View Number 2 « Inquire About This Item » View Number 3
« Inquire About This Item » A great variety of fanciful well used pipes were once in wide use among the Tiv of Nigeria. Figurative elements ranged from male sexual imagery to zoomorphic heads, references to firearms and fanciful geometric details all within a basic functional form. This lovely example features a sweetly abstract simian head with steel tack eyes as the masthead to an ergonomic masterpiece of counterbalanced curves, wood and steel elements. The complex geometric carving on the bottom is a bit of a mystery. It is plainly integral to the over all design as its rich patination matches that of the whole, but its meaning is obscure. 14.5" long; custom base. Price on request. « Inquire About This Item » View Number 2 « Inquire About This Item » View Number 3 « Inquire About This Item » View Number 4	« Inquire About This Item » A great variety of fanciful well used pipes were once in wide use among the Tiv of Nigeria. Figurative elements ranged from male sexual imagery to zoomorphic heads, references to wealth, virility and status and fanciful geometric details all within a basic functional form. Among my favorites was a pipe (sold many years ago) in the form of a rifle. The stem doubled as the rifle's barrel so that in effect the smoker placed gun to mouth with every puff. This is the only example I have found of a pipe celebrating a tortoise- an otherwise frequently encountered symbol in African art for earthbound fortitude, durability and humility. The pipe is also unique in that it is self supporting. Where as most pipes must be held while lit this highly sculptural example can be put down on the ground or on a table and allowed to smolder without any chance of the bowl spilling its contents. Carved from a hard well patinated wood with a wrought iron stem. 14" tall; unmounted. Price on request. « Inquire About This Item » View Number 2 « Inquire About This Item » View Number 3 « Inquire About This Item » View Number 4