Extremely Rare Double Figure - dense hardwood - Chamba - It dates to 1930/1940

Extremely Rare Double Figure – Chamba – Nigeria In fine condition. Minor insect damage to one foot. In fine condition. Minor insect damage to one foot and a native repair . Old patina. It dates to 1930/1940. On stand. Provenance: Collected by P. Westerdijk in situ in the Benue Valley at the end of the 1960s. Double figures showing a single pair of legs do occur among the Chamba and have become known to the market and the world of scientists from 1970 onwards. Here, however, the two do not face the same direction as is normally the case but are positioned opposite to each other and so are the legs, which is highly unusual. I do not know of any similar pieces. Fine red ochre patina on very hard wood. The faces are classical and so are the forward turned arms. Very fine balance over all in an harmonious construction. Literature: Richard Fardon and Christine Stelzig: Column to volume. Formal innovation in Chamba statuary. London, 2005, pp. 32 ff. Dimensions: 51 x 25 x 13 cm. People/ Region: The Chamba live in central northeast Nigeria. Material: dense hardwood. Weight: 3. 245 kg incl. stand Sold with handwritten declaration of authenticity by Dr. P. Westerdijk, museum ethnologist and cultural anthropologist specialized, for over 50 years now, in the study of the material cultures in African nations that live south of the Sahara.