The Spirit of the Equatorial Kwele Ancestor

[Pierre Tavlitzki]

In the rainforest at the boundary of Gabon, Cameroun and the current Congos, magic and funerary practices have generated masterpieces. In their search for perfect beauty, Kota and Kwele artists sought to express a relationship with the afterlife.

Thus we focus on a Kwele sculpture, for sale by Sotheby's in Paris on June 17. It is a convex head attached to a stool shaped pedestal by a long pedunculate neck. We imagine that this false stool is intended to protect the head from the dirt and mud of the soil, but it can also collect magical substances. The total height of the object is 41 cm.

The slightly flattened oval of the head, the arched shape of the thick eyebrows, the slit eyes, the triangular nose, the chiseled cap attached on the back of the head, are geometrically perfect. The pale complexion and no mouth reinforce the mystery of this spirit of asexual ancestor, which we are told that it looked over the skulls of the dead.

The patina is old, but as always, or almost, it is not possible to identify the date of creation. However, it dates from before the eradication of witchcraft in these regions, in the 1950s. The estimate is 450 K €.

[Pierre Tavlitzki]

The excellent result, 970 K € premium included, confirms that this statue was the masterpiece of this day of sales.

[Kuesta]

Very interesting information Pierre.