Angokg Nlo-Byeri on its Nsekh - woven tree bark, Alstonia wood and brass hobnails - Fang Ntumu - northwest Gabon

Formidable Antique Angokg Nlo-Byeri on its Nsekh – Fang Ntumu – Gabon. In good state. It dates to around 1880 – 1920. Provenance: Ex – collection of the Reverend Fathers of the Holy Spirit, Mortain, France. Obtained by exchange. Entered the Westerdijk family collection in 1979. This iconic ritual effigy was to magically protect and guard the human reliquary remains – mostly cranium tops – collected over multiple generation and stored in the cylindrical woven treebark box which a family chief held in his possession in his function as priest. This Fang head can on stylistical grounds be identified as Ntumu in origin. Being of relatively small size, it must have belonged to a minor lineage, possibly after its splitting – off from a larger unit. Good old age patina overall. Sculls removed. Literature: Ph. Laburthe – Tolra and Ch. Falgarettes – Leveau: Fang, Paris, 1991, pp. 105 ff. See also: Yves le Fur (ed.) Les forêts natales, Paris, 2007, pp. 59 – 60. Dimensions: 54 x 16 x 16. Region / People: Fang of northwest Gabon Material: woven tree bark, Alstonia wood and brass hobnails. Weight: head 0. 938 Nsekh 0. 745 kg. For the original text from seller, set language on this site to: English. Sold with written declaration of authenticity by Dr. P. Westerdijk, museum ethnologist and cultural anthropologist specialized in the material cultures of people living south of the Sahara. Sent by registered and insured mail.