Standing female figure "kambei" · Sierra Leone, Mende · ID: 3041751
Peter Werner, Munich, Germany
Walter Schmidt, Würzburg/Innsbruck, Germany/Austria
Description
wood, shiny black patina, neck rings, elaborate coiffure, carved with loincloth and armrings, scarification marks on face and back, rep. (breakage right foot tip), fine cracks, slight traces of abrasion, base;
for quite a long Time virtually all figures from the region have been called “minsereh” and have been associated with “yassi”. According to a newer research approach found by Hart they rather belong to a Mende society called “njayei”. This association keeps pairs of figures, male and female, known as “kambei” and “lomba” respectively. Such figures are said to represent both deceased members of the association and, in some sense, the associations ancestral spirits, possibly the original founders of the local chapter.
The object Standing female figure “kambei” with the object ID 3041751 was part of the auction 86th Tribal Art Auction on May 27, 2017. The object with the lot number 1 achieved a sales price of EUR 8,000 with an asking price of EUR 5,000.
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Publications
Schädler, Karl-Ferdinand, Afrikanische Kunst in Deutschen Privatsammlungen, München 1973, p. 23
AHDRC: 0112749