A Very Rare Old Tabwa Female Ancestor sculpture, African Art Без бренда

A Very Rare Old Tabwa Female Ancestor sculpture, African Art Без бренда
A Very Rare Old Tabwa Female Ancestor sculpture, African Art Без бренда - фотография #2
A Very Rare Old Tabwa Female Ancestor sculpture, African Art Без бренда - фотография #3
A Very Rare Old Tabwa Female Ancestor sculpture, African Art Без бренда - фотография #4
A Very Rare Old Tabwa Female Ancestor sculpture, African Art Без бренда - фотография #5
A Very Rare Old Tabwa Female Ancestor sculpture, African Art Без бренда - фотография #6
A Very Rare Old Tabwa Female Ancestor sculpture, African Art Без бренда - фотография #7
Бренд: Без бренда
~ 69 195 ₽ 750.00 $

Характеристики

Tribe Tabwa
A Stunning Old carved wooden sculpture of a important female ancestor from the South eastern edge of the Congo, central Africa.  An elegant and refined example of Tabwa peoples art, this female features incised "tattoo" designs and a wonderful golden honey color from handling over many years. Also of note, the female wears her traditional bely with animal hide "loin cloth"  The Statue measures 16 inches tall and has been mounted to a wooden display stand.


This figure most likely originates from the Lake Tanganyika region of southeastern Democratic Republic of Congo , and depicts a respected ancestor of a Tabwa ruler.

 During the late nineteenth , early 20th century, groups of elite Tabwa families who prospered through regional trade challenged traditional forms of governance and assumed control of regional leadership. These new Tabwa rulers looked to ancestry to legitimize their right to lead, invoking and, when necessary, inventing a chiefly lineage through sculptural representations of royal predecessors. A new genre of figural sculpture was developed to depict these chiefly ancestors. Passed down from one generation to the next, these works were visual representations of enduring dynastic power.

The legitimacy of the chiefly family's rule depended upon its perceived superiority within the community, and ancestral sculptures such as this were intended to reinforce these notions. Decoration of the skin with geometric designs was one way of indicating exceptional character: to transform one's body into an ordered, ornate, and visually pleasurable object was to attain the highest ideals of enlightenment and civilization. 

This female does exhibit facial markings that draw attention to areas of the head associated with acute perception and intelligence. Lines on the cheeks and forehead indicate the spot just above the bridge of the nose that was considered the origin of wisdom and foresight, and considered a special form of vision bestowed upon gifted individuals.

Such Tabwa figures, like most other works of this genre, are nude except for strands of beads around their necks, wrists, ankles, and, on the female figure, the waist. Period sources tell us that Tabwa individuals generally wore very few articles of clothing, but that beaded belts were commonly worn by both men and women, and acted as markers of kinship. When an elder died, his or her belt was passed down to a younger relative, maintaining ancestral continuity and family identity. In the context of these sculptures, such belts were vital signs of lineage that reinforced links to previous generations of rulers.

One of the finest examples of Tabwa Art that we have offered in the last 25 years.



 
My name is Todd Zieseniss and I have been selling African, Asian and Pre-columbian Tribal Arts for nearly 25 years.  I opened my first gallery "Tribal Gatherings" in 1994 and I have sold well over 20,000 works of Ethnographic arts in this time.  I was one of the original sellers of Tribal Art on Ebay when it first started under the Ebay name "brightpath" and then I opened a second selling sight "Tribal gatherings" a few years later, which I still maintain.   

 I have worked in authentication and appraisals for Rago auctions and other major auction houses in the Philadelphia region.  I have contacts worldwide for Ethnographic arts and I am happy to help you build your collection.   

 I have a large inventory of Art objects, you will only ever see a small portion on ebay.

 I sell decorative objects to Museum grade treasures and all at affordable prices. 

 I would like to offer my expertise, and a selection of good objects picked with a trained eye.  Please bookmark my ebay auctions page, I promise to keep it interesting.