Baulé, region of Bouaké (Ivory Coast)
Hardwood with dark coating
H 63 cm
Ritual figure used in magic and divination. It depicts an old man balancing a typical wooden container on his head. It was used during divinatory ceremonies and taken to different villages for rituals, which, in the past, also included human sacrifices. The vase balanced on his head was used to carry small portions of food. The shiny coating covering the wood was obtained by mixing palm oil and vegetable fat.
Estimate
€ 8.000 - 10.000
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Provenienza
- Former Paolo Morigi collection (Lugano) (collected in 1961);
- George F. Keller antique collection (New York/Davos) (Inv. G.F.K. 152);
- Former private collection (Lugano);
Exhibition
- Lugano 1965, Villa Ciani Museum;
- Bern 1980, Musée des Beaux Arts;
- Lugano 2002, Palazzo Riva, Banca Svizzera Italiana (BSI);
Literature
Reproduced in:
- Villa Ciani Museum “Mostra d’arte africana primitiva” Lugano, November 1965, num. 68;
- “Cooperazione Ticinese” Magazine, Lugano, num. 48 of 27 November 1968, page 3;
- MORIGI PAOLO “Raccolta di un amatore d’arte primitiva”, Magliaso, Lugano & Kunstmuseum Bern, Switzerland 1980, fig. 157, page 155;
- VENTURI LUCA M. “Anime antiche, arte negra, da una raccolta di sculture dell’Africa occidentale” BSI Bank, Lugano 2002, fig. 26;