Insights into the showroom

Rare panel of the "ekpo" society

Nigeria, Eket

Rare panel of the "ekpo" society, Eket, Nigeria

This high relief mask is one of the few known board masks of the "ekpo" society. Their form allows different iconographic interpretations, but their individual elements are related to each other. It reminds the viewer of set-piece compositions in the manner of the European art of early medieval artworks.

Provenance:
Alain Dufour, Saint Maur, France (1970s)
Lucien van de Velde, Antwerp, Belgium
Didier Claes, Bruxelles, Belgium (2007)
Christie's, Paris, 11 December 2014, lot 153
Belgian Private Collection

Preview in Wurzburg:
Wed 4 until Fri 6 July from 10 am until 7 pm  
Sat 7 July from 9 am until 2 pm 

Auction in Wurzburg:
Saturday, 7 July 2018 starting at 2 pm 

Telephone bidding support in German, English and French!

 

The Art of the Eket from Nigeria

The Eket communities, located east of the Qua Ibo River and east of the city of Eket, are in close proximity to the Ibibio, and are considered to be a subgroup of the Ibibio people in Nigeria. They are organized into 45 village communities [K.F. Schädler, Encyclopedia of African Art and Culture, Munich 2009, p. 209]

In the Western world, they are best known for their dance masks. Due to the long colonial history, many works of the Eket can be found in British collections. It wasn’t before the 1970s that collectors such as Alain Dufour, Wolfgang Klein, Edward Klejman collected works of the Eket culture.

 

 

Insights into the preview:
(Photos: Matt Keyworth)