Black carved Gremlin help

Discussion in 'Tribal Art' started by glassluv, Sep 27, 2024 at 8:36 AM.

  1. glassluv

    glassluv Active Member

    Hello,
    Does anyone have an idea of age and origin of these pieces? My friend inherited them with no history. Thanks. I pretty sure they are both some king of hard wood.
    I thought the figure has the feel of stone or something until I looked at the bottom.
    Thanks for looking. figure.jpg figure1.jpg mask.png maskback.jpg figurebottom.jpg oh, the figure is 11 inches tall, and the face is 15 inches tall.
     
    glassluv, Sep 27, 2024 at 8:36 AM
    #1 + Quote Reply
  2. 2manybooks

    2manybooks Well-Known Member

    The small figure is probably a Makonde carving from Tanzania, depicting a shetani - a bush spirit. Makonde carvings are typically made using African blackwood, Dalbergia melanoxylon.

    https://www.blackwoodconservation.org/makonde-art/

    https://www.zawadee.com/pages/search-results?q=shetani

    The mask also looks like African blackwood, so it might also be Makonde. But I have not seen this style of thing from them before. Here is another, very similar -

    https://www.etsy.com/listing/1532336151/unique-vintage-african-tribal-wooden
     
    2manybooks, Sep 27, 2024 at 10:46 AM
    #2 + Quote Reply
    komokwa and Any Jewelry like this.
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