This is the rating and price for African Salampasu Painted Wood Panel, 2016

Description : Central Africa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Salampasu peoples, ca. early 20th century CE. An exceedingly rare example of a carved wooden wall plaque bearing an expressive and highly stylized anthropomorphic mask in the center. The rectangular plaque features eight narrow semicircles in red or white pigments along the peripheries as well as two larger semicircles on the top and bottom, and the interior surfaces are embellished with petite red and white spots atop a black ground. The center exhibits an intriguing mask exhibiting an ovoid jawline with plug-form ears, bared teeth beneath a trapezoidal nose, crescent-shaped eyes, and a bulging, red-painted brow showcasing dozens of white spots beneath a squat coiffure. Size: 9.8 W x 22.6 H (24.9 cm x 57.4 cm), 25.5 H (64.8 cm) on included custom stand. The approximately 60,000 Salampasu people live on the Kasai River, near the border between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Angola, they are governed by territorial chiefs and have a reputation as fearless warriors. The Salampasu have long maintained close relations with the Chokwe and Lunda peoples and, like their neighbors, are renowned for their powerful masks, elaborate ceremonial performances, and ornate fiber costumes. Masks like this one are marks of hierarchy, accessible to men after they have passed through a circumcision ritual. Earning the right to wear a mask means that a man has accrued a certain amount of wealth (through payments of livestock, drink, and other material goods) and has performed specific deeds. Less well known, however, are wall plaques like this example that are carved in high relief. While not all plaques display masks along the obverse sides, those that do feature anthropomorphic countenances, abstract zoomorphic faces, and even figural effigies rendered as masks. An example of just the mask portion without any spotted embellishments hammered for EUR 8,750 ($10,344.26) at Christie's, Paris Art d'Afrique et d'Oceanie auction (sale 12692, June 23, 2016, lot 279). Provenance: private New York, New York, USA collection, ex-Amyas Naegele collection, New York, New York, USA, ex-private vintage Midwest United States collection, acquired prior to the 1960s 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. We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience. #159311
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