This hand-cast crafted Djenne ring is made of bronze and dates as early as the 11th or 12th century. Dugged from the ground, it has retained its archeological patina. A superb heavy oxidized vert-de-gris patina of greens and browns as well as encrusted deposits cover this imposing ring.

Made of 100% Brass / Bronze

Model is W 5 – H 3 and weight 0.02 kg.

A particularly unusual helmet like mask from the Nsukka area, the northern part of the north-central Igbo region in Nigeria. This region has one of the most complex and diverse mask making traditions in Nigeria.

Made of 100% wood.

Model is W 39 - H 22 and weight 0.7 kg.

Brass ceremonial tobacco pipe, conical, decorated with a geometric ornments and facial features. The piece originates from the Ife tribe in Nigeria. Pieces such as this one were created to honor the king , or Oba, who has reigned, with his ancestors, from the 15th century. Ife is regarded as the legendary homeland of theYoruba-speaking peoples and its sacred ruler, the Ooni, is still revered as the descendant of the original creator gods.

Made of 100% Bronze, copper alloy.

Model is W 18 – H 42 and weight 0.4 kg.

A beautiful Mumuye figure from northeastern Nigeria that incarnate titulary spirits. Mumuye figures carved with crescentic coiffure, an helmet like shaped head, large circular eyes and disc-like ears has a characteristical toroidal shape and the unmistakable stylistic sign of this Mumuye ethnic group. Thye are highly abstracted, perhaps in part because they invoke forms of human and supernatural authority. The statue may have added elements: beads, belts, bracelets, chains, leather laces, ropes or braided vegetable matter, brass wires, or cowrie shells. The statues’ principal characteristic, unique in African art, is the openwork between the body and the arms, which forms a scroll or a spiral around the slender, cylindrical bust. The Mumuye distinguish the gender of the figures on the basis of the shape of the ears; only Mumuye women distend their earlobes.

Made of 100% Wood with dark patina, kaolin, fiber, beads.

Model is W 12 – H 30 and weight 0.2 kg.

This zoomorphic figure with protruding eyes is a classic example of the Mambila people of northern Nigeria.  The wide range of uses to which such a figure may have been employed was probably determined by the medicines in the possession of the owner, and how it was activated, rather than by specific stylistic characteristics of the sculpture itself.

Made of 100% wood, pigments.

Model is W 41 - H 18 and Weight 1.2 kg.

Brass ceremonial tobacco pipe, conical, decorated with a geometric ornments and facial features. The piece originates from the Ife tribe in Nigeria. Pieces such as this one were created to honor the king , or Oba, who has reigned, with his ancestors, from the 15th century. Ife is regarded as the legendary homeland of theYoruba-speaking peoples and its sacred ruler, the Ooni, is still revered as the descendant of the original creator gods.

Made of 100% Bronze, copper alloy.

Model is W 18 – H 43 and weight 0.4 kg.

This Kunin statuette originates from Middle Benue River Valley, Nigeria, and is distinguished by its overall elegant proportions. It is stylistically compared to their Mumuye and Jukun neighbors. This figure is not very common and their role is little known but it has been reported that figures such as this are used in a cult activity known as Jup that is in the main dominated by men or in the case of women, Jem.

Made of 100% carved wood, patina.

Model is W 7 - H 40 and weight 0.2 kg.

The beautifully carved figure is a key example of an Igbo sculptural genre called ikenga. It depicts a a male warrior in a seated position on a one-legged stool, holding a cutlass in one hand and a tool. The figure wears an elaborate headdress comprised of two curving, interconnected horn-like extensions, with three projecting cone shapes on either side of the face. The horns, perhaps those of a ram, underline the rank or chief status of the image. The figure’s forehead and temples are graced with parallel incisions imitating local scarification patterns known as ichi. The ichi scars signal that the sculpture represents a high-ranking member of one of the many Igbo male associations. The white color around the eyes, derived from chalk, signifies purity and protection, and refers to the benevolence of the spirits.

Made of 100% wood.

Model is W 28 – H 96 and weight 2.6 kg.

This finely crafted bronze Royal leopard was made by a craftsman blacksmith using the technique of lost wax, with beautifully detailed patterns, depicting the leopard skin. A "Leopard" was used as a symbol of Justice and power in the Yoruba culture. African proverbs about leopards are so "spot on": The rain wets the leopard's spots but does not wash them off." Leopard appears most frequently in yoruba art, as “king of the forest”, his reputation is as great as that of the Oba, or king. The leopard came to be a royal symbol as it heralded for the balance between his strength and his reserve and moderation as a leader. The leopard symbolizes the complete harmony between two compelling forces – the menacing and the moderating – that, in Benin, it is believed every ideal Oba should possess.

Made of 100% Bronze, copper alloy.

Model is W 38 – H 50 and weight 1.4 kg

Female spirit statue (Anjenu) originating from the Idoma peoples that live south of the Benue river. The statue evokes a spiritual protective power that inhabits the water or the bush and sometimes appears in dreams. Anjenu helps to cure illness and, above all, aids female fertility. The Anjenu was invoked by men who wanted their wives to become pregnant. Protruding conical breasts and navels are common. The face is usually painted with white pigments, scarification marks in front of the ears as well as the vertical one on the forehead, and the blackened lips surrounding the mouth with its clearly visible teeth - a stylistic characteristic often shared with Ibo people. Seated statues are believed to incarnate fertility, a frequent theme in the region.

Made of 100% wood, pigment.

Model is W 30 – H 50 and weight 3.6 kg.

Chamba sculptures are not very common and have an exceptional aesthetic presence and compelling abstract design. It was thought to have either a protective or healing function for the Wurkun or Bikwin peoples of the Benue River Valley, and were kept in small houses. Their function is to ensure the well-being of the owner and his family.

Made of 100% wood, pigment.

Model is W 12 - H 35 and weight 1.2 kg.

This finely carved bronze figure represents a dwarf at the court of Benin. Wearing courtly dress in continuation of the traditional bronze art of Benin in form of a bearded person with o-shaped legs and neck adornment. In Edo culture dwarfs were known as the jugglers and acrobats in the Oba court.

Made of 100% Bronze

Model is W 46 – H 22 and weight 5 k

This authentic, free-standing brass head cast in the lost wax technique of the Benin Kingdom, in what is now Nigeria, exhibits a virtuosity and sophistication of style that has astonished the Western world since they were visited in the 15th century. The face's shape and unique expression, a tranquil and dignified presence with the transcendent gaze clearly indicate qualities of genuine nobility: endurance, far-sightedness, determination, and wisdom.

Made of 100% Copper

Age late 14th-early 15th century

Model is W 40 – H 26 and weight 5 kg.

"Elu" mask with hinged movable jaw originates from the Ogoni tribe in Nigeria, early 20th century. Lower jaw portion attached to upper by narrow wooden threads on each side. Semicircular disc like ears protrude from sides of face. Scarification marks with geometrically incised designs appear on forehead. The eyes are hollow almond shaped openings. The head decoration has a raised portion representing ancestors or title holders.

Made of 100% light hand-carved cane wood, fiber and pigments.

Model is W 33 - H 21 and weight 0.8 kg.

This beautiful mask with a figure surmounting it is an Epa masks origination from the Yoruba/Ekiti people of northern Nigeria. Masks such as these are considered one of the largest masks used in Africa, and worn as a helmet.The Jagunjagun ( ‘warrior’ or Ogun meaning ‘god of war’) mask represents ancestors of power with the ability to protect the community against external threats. It brings to mind energy, power and authority but is also a visual representation of past calvary that protected the Ekiti peoples during warfare.

Made of 100% Wood, pigment.

Model is W 20 H 36 and weight 4 kg.

This Early-mid 20th century mother-and-child figures are placed in shrines and used by diviners in northeastern Igboland, Nigeria. The Igbo figures of mother and child are very rare.

Made of 100% wood, kaolin.

Model is W 55 - H 19 and weight 3.5 kg.

This Ife bracelet from Benin is made of bronze and was used as currency and left as a gift of great value to the bride, as a wish for prosperity. In addition to the consistency and weight, this cuff is remarkable because of the details of the decorations, which are a clear sign of the Benin artistic mastery. The holes, perfectly integrated in the design, demonstrate the use of the valuable lost wax technique.

Made of 100% Brass / Bronze

Model is W 6 – H 13 and weight 0.6 kg.

This authentic antique Benin bronze ancestral altar bell, cast in the form of a dome comes from Nigeria. The bell is surmounted with by a horseman and adorned by geometical shape. Tribal bells were used for a variety of purposes, such as proclaiming a sacred presence as well as a neutralizing hostile or harmful forces. Bells were used as tools of communication, as portable instruments for conveying important messages, and as a form or currency. The predominant method employed by the Edo in creating objects like the Bells, called “lost-wax casting, does not permit for a mold to be used more than once, a fact which accounts for the idiosyncrasies and lack of exact copies in known examples of Benin bronzes. Using the bells and rattle stuffs to call the ancestor’s spirit, the oba offered sacrifices to him and to the earth on the altar.

Made of 100% Bronze, copper alloy.

Model is W 9 – H 32 and weight 0.4 kg.

This “Elu” mask originates from the Ogoni tribe in Nigeria. Scarification marks with geometrically incised designs appear on the forehead. The eyes are hollow almond shaped openings. The head decoration has a raised portion representing ancestors or title holders.

Made of 100% wood.

Model is W 18 – H 42 and weight 0.4 kg.

A sculpture representing the ancestors of the Chamba that settled south of the Benue, nearby the Jurkun. These type of Statue of the Chamba are quite rare and their role is little known but it has been reported that figures such as these are used in a cult activity known as Jup that is in the main dominated by men or in the case of women, Jem.

Made of 100% carved wood, patina, pigments.

Model is W 11 – H 40 and weight 2 kg.

Finely cast bronze (brass - copper alloy) figural scene comes from Nigeria. It depicts a kneeling female figure worker or farmer. The work of bronze by the technique of wax lost in African art.

Made of 100% Bronze, copper alloy.

Model is W 6 – H 27 and weight 0.5 kg.

This miniature free-standing brass head cast in the lost wax technique originates from Ife, Nigeria. The religious and former royal centre of the Yoruba people. According to the oral traditions of the Yoruba people, Ife is the place where life and civilisation began. Ife is regarded as the legendary homeland of theYoruba-speaking peoples and its sacred ruler, the Ooni, is still revered as the descendant of the original creator gods.

Made of 100% Bronze, copper alloy.

Model is W 9 – H 18 and weight 0.3 kg.

This Kunin statuette originates from Middle Benue River Valley, Nigeria, and is distinguished by its overall elegant proportions. It is stylistically compared to their Mumuye and Jukun neighbors. This figure is not very common and their role is little known but it has been reported that figures such as this are used in a cult activity known as Jup that is in the main dominated by men or in the case of women, Jem.

Made of 100% carved wood, patina.

Model is W 10 - H 66 and weight 2 kg.

This beautiful Mama Bush Cow in full figure is classic example of a traditional African figure created by the Mama people who live in the interior of Nigeria in the Benue River Valley north of the Jos plateau. It is extremely rare to get hold of a Mama Bush Cow.

Made of 100% wood, cam wood, pigment.

Model is W 50 - H 16 and weight 2 kg.

"Elu" mask with an expressive Bird like face and hinged jaw originates from the Ogoni tribe in Nigeria, early 20th century. Wooden face mask with hinged, movable jaw. Lower jaw portion attached to upper by narrow wooden threads on each side. Semicircular disc like ears protrude from sides of face. Scarification marks with geometrically incised designs appear on both sides of the face at outer corner of eye area. The eyes are hollow almond shaped openings. The head decoration has a raised portion, with a vertical light-painted keloid or scar mark the center.

Made of 100% light hand-carved cane wood, fiber and pigments.

Model is W 30 - H 19 and weight 3 kg.

This unusual and particularly imaginative helmet like mask is from the Nsukka area, the northern part of the northcentral Igbo region in Nigeria. This region has one of the most complex and diverse mask making traditions in Nigeria.

Made of 100% wood

Model is W 33 – H 25 and weight 1.2 kg.