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A STONE ANCESTOR FIGURE, ESIE, IGBOMINA, 18TH CENTURY
奥地利
04月17日 下午5点 开拍 /15天1小时
拍品描述
A STONE ANCESTOR FIGURE, ESIE, IGBOMINA, 18TH CENTURYPublished: Phillips Stevens, The Stone Images of Esi?, Nigeria, Ibadan, 1978, p. 125, no. HT 45.Exhibited: Museum der V?lker (formerly Haus der V?lker, Museum für Kunst und Ethnographie), Schwaz, Tyrol, Austria, Meisterwerke aus 4 Kontinenten, 1 June-21 September 2008.Nigeria. Finely carved seated atop a stool with the hands resting on the knees, dressed in a short skirt and adorned with beaded jewelry, the large head detailed with almond-shaped eyes and ears set far back. The elaborate coiffure is surmounted by an elegant headdress with a calabash-form container at the front, a type widely used in the Sudanic regions of Africa as a personal accoutrement for holding herbal medicines and worn as a protective charm.Provenance: - Collection of Volker Schneider, Germany.- Collection of Dr. Andreas Lindner, acquired from the above in the late 1990s.- A letter of confirmation written and signed by Chief Dr. Omotoso Eluyemi, Director General and Chief Executive of the National Commission for Museums & Monuments, Nigeria, dated 26 July 2004, confirms that the present lot is “not stolen [and] is neither part of the cultural heritage of the Federal Republic of Nigeria [and] has been exported in accordance with the laws in vigor on the basis of an export permit issued to Mr. Volker Schneider”. A copy of this document accompanies the lot. Dr. Omotoso Eluyemi (1939-2006) was born in Ife and became the first Yoruba scholar to earn a Ph.D. in archaeology, at the Academy of Sciences, Moscow, in 1979. He served as Curator in the Federal Department of Antiquities, Lagos in 1969-70, and later pioneered archaeological studies at Obafemi Awolowo University, founding its Department of Archaeology in 1984 and serving as its Chair until 1989. A member of the World Archaeological Congress and long-standing Editorial Board member of the West African Journal of Archaeology, he later established the Center for Yoruba Cultural Studies and Elusope Temple of Deities. In 2000, he was appointed by President Olusegun Obasanjo to head the National Commission for Museums and Monuments. Volker Schneider is a German collector and dealer specializing in African art, active in the field for over three decades. Alongside his work as a documentary filmmaker for German television, he established close contacts with officials and prominent figures in several African countries, including Nigeria and Ghana. Works he acquired are today held in major German museum collections, among them Nok figures in the Dresden Museum of Ethnology. Dr. Andreas Lindner is a distinguished private collector of African, Oceanic, and Native American art. From the 1990s onwards, he and his wife Kathrin assembled an important collection, part of which was presented in a single-owner sale at Sotheby's Paris on 8 June 2007, achieving a total of over EUR 6,000,000. Works from their collection have also been exhibited at the Museum der V?lker in Schwaz, Tyrol. Dr. Lindner further established the Stiftung für Au?ereurop?ische Kunst, a foundation dedicated to fostering respect and understanding for cultures beyond Europe.Condition: Condition commensurate with age, showing old wear, signs of weathering and erosion, natural cracks, obvious losses, and an old repair to the neck, as well as minor chips, encrustations, light nicks, and surface scratches.Weight: 32 kg Dimensions: Height 70 cmMore than one thousand soapstone figures reside within a forested grove near the ìgbómìnà-Yorùbá town of è?ì?? in present-day Kwara state in Nigeria. They depict a diverse spectrum of individuals whose attire, jewelry, and hairstyles indicate various personages and social roles: men, women, children, royalty, soldiers, hunters, professionals (e.g., weavers), commoners (e.g., drummers). The sculptures share distinctive stylistic traits: disproportionately large heads, almond-shaped eyes, ears positioned far back, and intricate coiffures. Many have facial marks or scarification, while others have plain visages. Their expressions range from solemn to gently smiling. The majority are seated, with kneeling postures noted for figures identified as pregnant women and standing postures often associated with armed individuals, possibly guards. Some hold objects like machetes or musical instruments, while others rest their hands on their knees. A significant number exhibit signs of deliberate damage. Despite scholarly attention since their broader recognition around 1933, fundamental questions regarding their origins persist.The sculptures were perhaps originally intended for ancestral veneration or the commemoration of social hierarchy (their diverse representations suggest a complex, stratified society). The sheer scale of the è?ì?? corpus implies a society with significant organizational capacity and sociopolitical complexity extending beyond basic agrarian structures given the requirements for quarrying, carving, transporting, and arranging more than 1,000 figures.The sculptures' original context, though disturbed, suggests a deliberate and ritually significant arrangement. Early reports describe figures positioned in a semicircle around a central figure known as the ?ba ère (King of Images), possibly representing ancestral gatherings or a cosmological schema. The works were found within a grove surrounded by pèrègún trees (genus Dracaena), traditionally used to mark sacred Yorùbá spaces. The local term for the sculptures, ère (images), underscores the context of their commemoration during the annual ?dún ère (Festival of Images). This communal event historically involved worship and thanksgiving, emphasizing the figures' perceived agency to bring fortune or misfortune. Rituals included offerings of kola nuts, goats, and fowls presided over by an àwòrò (priest) connected to the elésì?? (chief) and culminating in a communal meal symbolizing participation with the sculptures. The elésì?? was traditionally forbidden from viewing the figures directly, suggesting a significant taboo or acknowledgment of their sacred power. This prohibition, rooted in Yorùbá cosmology, prevented the concentration of temporal and spiritual authority in one individual, thereby preserving the balance between the human and spiritual realms. The àwòrò served as the sole intermediary between the community and the ancestral forces associated with the sculptures. These restrictions reinforced the separation of political and spiritual roles, distinguished the community of è?ì?? from the sacred yet ambiguous status of the figures, and centralized interpretive authority—all of which is further emphasized by original myths and the sanctity of the grove where the sculptures reside.Literature comparison:Compare a closely related Esie statue of a seated human figure, Igbomina (Kwara State), dated to the 19th century, 75.5 cm high, in the National Commission for Museums and Monuments, Nigeria.

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