This is the rating and price for 19Th C. Gurunsi Bronze - Double Chameleons

Description : Africa, Burkino Faso, southeastern area (formerly Upper Volta), Gan and Lobi cultures, ca. pre-1900 CE. Impressively intricate bronze casting of a pair of chameleons attached to an iron snake. This piece is fascinating in that it is most likely a product of two cultures, the Gan and the Lobi. The Gan are an ancient, little-known Voltaic group that are ironmongers and creators of zigzag forms as we see in this serpent depicted in this piece. The Lobi religious priests called Thil reign over all family groups and demand altarpieces in the form of male or female figures and chameleons, two of which are depicted in this piece. Here we have a joining of the two overlapping cultures with an altar piece offering from each culture, blended. According to collector, This was probably found in the remains of a collapsed household altar a century ago. The zigzag , serpentine form of the iron snake is a characteristic form among the Gan. The two bronze chameleon-iron snake object was probably demanded by a Lobi Thil (spirit) for an altar. All of the bronzes from the Pickard Collection and have been checked out with a museum expert on ancient bronze who worked for both the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Sackler Foundation. It is extremely rare to find small, ancient African bronzes that are authentic. These are the real deal! 2 L. Provenance: Ex-B. Pickard private collection, Oklahoma City, OK. Mr. Pickard began his collection in 1959 following university studies while in Africa. All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back. A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids. #107295
Price: 310.00 USD It's free to register now to view!
Estimate (low-high) : 500 USD-900 USD It's free to register now to view!

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