Face bell · Nigeria, Lower Niger · ID: 3051077
sold
EUR 2,100
Provenance
Sotheby’s, London, 8 July 1974, Lot 117K. John Hewett (1919-1994), London, Great Britain
Sotheby’s, London, 21 June 1979, Lot 148
Rudolf Leopold, Vienna, Austria
Erwin & Susanne Melchardt, Vienna, Austria
Size
H: 17 cm
H: 6.7 inch
Description
copper alloy, casting defect, old age patina
Reminiscent of the so-called “omo” face bells worn by chiefs in the Ijebu region of the Yoruba people, where they served as a sign of the wearer’s rank and power.
Comparing literature
Fagg, William, Yoruba, Sculpture of West Africa, New York 1982, p. 70 f.
Publications
AHDRC: 0097332