Female bowl bearer · Sierra Leone, Mende/Temne · ID: 3032658
Christie’s, London, May 13, 1980, lot 179
Richard Rüegg, Zurich, Switzerland
Description
wood, glossy middle brown patina, black paint, encrusted in some areas, bead loincloth, rising from strong legs, in typical posture the arms carved free of the body with the hands on the hips, the compressed face on ringed neck carved with a medicine-horn necklet, the bowl on her head possibly carved as mortar, slightly dam. (above all the rim of the bowl), the back repaired with long split, on round wooden plate;
medicine figures of this kind belong to the “yassi” society. They are used as protectors and healing agents. They are kept in a special area of the shrine with the medicine and, when needed to perform a cure, are placed in a bowl with a herb and clay mixture.
The object Female bowl bearer with the object ID 3032658 was part of the auction 69th tribal art auction on June 2, 2012. The object with the lot number 160 achieved a sales price of EUR 8,500 with an asking price of EUR 5,000.
Here you will find more objects and interesting facts about African art.