African Masks & Tribal Artifacts

African tribal art has many forms.

Masks are used in tribal dances to placate
the spirit world, to propitiate good
health, to promote ample harvest, to
protect deceased loved ones as they
journey to the'other' world, to discipline
and to educate.

Carvings are made to protect a village
from bush spirits or to please a spouse
in the other world.

Textiles are created to clothe, decorate
and demonstrate domestic skills.

Jewelry is crafted to adorn the body.

Pottery, musical instruments, and
implements are made to reinforce
cultural values and shared traditions,
and bring beauty to every day life.

From the time we began collecting African
Tribal Art, more than 40 years ago, we've
seen changes that have splintered the "market"
into three parts.

At the top are ancient pieces that
have resided in ethnographic museums,
mostly in Europe. They are priced
beyond the means of most people
who would be interested in them.

The bottom tier is cheap, mass-produced
tribal-like wall art. They are brought
to America in bulk on container ships.
Old hands refer to this segment as
"airport art". Some of it pretends to
be African in origin. Much is actually
from Asia.

In the middle tier is where we serve.
Everything from Africa that we offer,
we acquired personally, either in Africa
or from trusted dealers in African tribal
art. It is all quality art, if not at the top
of the category. None is "airport art".

We include Certificates of Authenticity,
explaining the history of the item and
how it came into our possession. (Some
of it has been exhibited in museums and
is so noted.)

Below is a link to a list of tips on how to
evaluate and select African Tribal Art that
appeals to you.

Yoruba oshe Shango dance wands and shrine objects.

Please note: Since Yoruba Shango carvings tend to be anatomically explicit, we have obscured portions of items in thumbnails. Clicking on each item will reveal unedited larger views of that wand.