Estimate

Price on request

Session 2

30 June 2021

Hammer Price

Description

In african ivory
Hollow and relieved decoration with geometric motifs and an Oba figure
Nigeria, 18th century

Height: 12,7 cm Diam.: 10,5 cm

Category

Objects

Additional Information

Provenance: Comandante Alpoim Calvão Collection

LOT NOTE

This piece of great visual impact is formed by a double ivory cylinder. The one on the inside – a thinner one – is integrally perforated to outline the carved figures. The outside, thicker and hollow, has a band and mirror decoration, alternating two rectangular with two smaller oval bands. Each one shows two scenes that develop from a string with holes from which some beads hang, from the center and in a centripetal way, to the periphery. The rectangular bands are characterized by two double representations, in a total of four, of great iconic and symbolic complexity: in one of the registers, the Oba is represented as a central figure of great expressiveness, with a long neck, flat face, eyes with prominent pupils and heavy lids, parallel and separated lips. He wears a conical hat and cartridge belts or crossed sashes, fantasy elements adopted by the rulers of Owo and Benin. The King is supported by two subordinates who appear in profile. This highly symbolic triad composition appears in numerous works of art from the 16th century onwards, extolling the powers of the Chief and underscoring the idea that the power of a ruler depends on the strength of those he governs.
The mirror image represents four other warriors, also pictured from the side, as if the monarch was surrounded by his own army.
On the other side, two priests with their torso in frontal position and their heads in profile, hold a snake and flank the image of an Opanifa or Ifá - object of worship, Ifá is the source of knowledge and predictions of the future - whose frame is surrounded by mudfish, fish, associated with Olukun, God of the sea, which symbolizes prosperity, peace, and fertility. One of the most powerful images of royalty is the King's legs in Mudfish which gives him a semi-divine power.
In a mirror image, and horizontally, two warriors are depicted in profile beside a crocodile that swallows a mudfish, both symbolic animals of Olunkun, the god of the aquatic kingdom.
Following the same decorative scheme, the oval bands show two warriors facing forward, with open arms, holding serpents in their hands drawing an arch – a symbol of royalty. Like other Owo ivory objects, this bracelet exhibits a high level of sophistication that is given to it not only by its various textures and patterns, but also by its decorative density. The anthropomorphic representation follows the characteristics of the Owo ivory pieces: flat face, heavy lidded eyes and prominent pupils, conical hairstyles, as well as the perforated style and mirror image composition. The technical virtuosity of the artist who produced it is all too evident in this magnificent work of art.
The iconography extols and represents the proper leadership of the Oba of Benin or the ruler of Owo. Bracelets like this were for the exclusive use of these chiefs and, when displayed on their arm, took on an intrinsic meaning of power and self-protection. This mirror composition is intended to be read not only by the ruler who uses it, but also by the observer. On the other hand, the whiteness of the ivory suggests the foam of the sea and reflects the close connection of the King to Olukun, God of the sea, which is why the bracelets produced in this material are exclusively intended for these monarchs.
Produced from the 16th century onwards, the themes and decorative elements of these highly erudite pieces were repeated until the 20th century.
The various textures, iconography, and ornamental consistency of great erudition that this bracelet presents, giving it a high level of sophistication, associated with the material used, for the exclusive use of Tribal Chief Owo, allow us to classify it as a rare and important work by art.
As we have already mentioned, there is a very similar piece, practically with
the same iconography and attributed to the 18th century in the collection of the Ethnographic Museum of Vienna (Museum number 74.017). We also refer to another one with many similarities in the collection of the Musée du quai Branly, in Paris, which Ezio Bassani (1924-2018) presents in his 2008 study – Ivoires d'Afrique dans les anciennes collections françaises – and attributed it to the kingdom of Owo in Nigeria, considering it from the 16th century.
We also remember the bracelets from the Penn Museum collection, in Pennsylvania, which date back to the 19th century and the British Museum (Inv. No. Af1898, 0623.1.), which will have been acquired in the Kingdom of Benin, both with similarities to the bracelet that is now presented at auction.

THE KINGDOM OF OWO

The kingdom of Owo (1400-1600), composed mainly of Yoruba peoples, along with the ancient kingdom of Benin (1440-1897), essentially formed by Edo ethnic groups, was found in the south of modern Nigeria, and had traced its origins with strong affiliations in the Ifé culture of the ancient city of Ile-Ifé
– the cradle of Yoruba culture. The historical ties of these two kingdoms with
Ifé contributed to their sense of identity, which justifies the appropriation and sharing of certain political, religious, and artistic aspects.
William Fagg (1951), comparing ivory works from Benin and Owo, concludes that there are great similarities in iconography and technique, although there are some specific characteristics that differentiate one style from another, especially in the face of the images. Fagg further argues that the Igbesanmwan – Benin's ivory carvers guild – must have recruited many artisans in Owo to work in their workshops. This explains the close association between the two centers.

COMMANDER ALPOIM CALVÃO

When we talk about Commander Guilherme Almor de Alpoim Calvão (1937- 2014) we mention one of the most decorated officers of the Portuguese Armed Forces (with, among others, two Military Order of Torre and Espada) during the Estado Novo.
Born in Chaves, he attended the Escola Naval and commanded Portuguese militias in the colonial war in Africa, initially in Mozambique. Between 1963 and 1974 he headed the Portuguese army in Guinea-Bissau, having been responsible for the invasion of Guinea Conakry in 1970, which culminated in the release of 26 Portuguese who had been captured by the PAIGC.
A great collector of works of art, his collection was constantly enriched. In it we could find the most important export porcelains, Portuguese painting, colonial art, namely Namban, Indo-Portuguese and African, as is the case of this magnificent Yoruba Bracelet, surely acquired in the 60s/70s during his stay in Guinea-Bissau.

LITERATURE

BASSANI, Ezio – African artefacts in European collections- 1400-1800. Londres: British Museum Pubns itd, 2000. BASSANI, Ezio e FAGG, William – Africa and the Renaissance: art in ivory. Nova Iorque: Prestel, 1988.
BASSANI, Ezio - Ivoires d’Afrique dans les anciennes collections françaises. Paris: Actes Sud, 2008.
FAGG, William – Afro-portuguese Ivory. Londres: Batchworth Press, 1959
DUCHATEAU, Armand, Benin Tresor Royal: Collection du Museum fur Volkerkunde, Vienne, cf. Editions Dapper, 1990, p. 85.