A unique Ijaw Janus with two stylized crocodile heads.
Reference Prof. Herbert Cole: Ijaw (Ijo) water spirit mask (no comparable masks found in literature) very fine smooth patina. Lengh 78 cm, 11,5 cm high. A janus waterspirit headdress, probably a crocodile spirit, with wooden teeth inserted in open upper and lower jaws. The specific spirit’s name and characteristics cannot be known without collection data, but the Janus treatment is unusual, and may possibly point to a spirit of greater than average power - the principle being either “two heads are better than one” or “two heads can see forward and backward at the same time.” Such headdresses were lashed in a horizontal position atop the masker’s head and were often decorated with feathers and/or strips of cloth; these sometimes obscured the headdress. Typically, wild animal spirits were “tamed” and made more civilized during performance, taking on more human and benign characteristics toward the end of the play. The surface patina of this headdress suggests considerable use over time, but just how old it is cannot be determined.
Lit.:
see Anderson and Peek 2002.
Provenance:
Trullu. Austrian private collection. (VJ)
Specialist: Joris Visser
Joris Visser
+32-2-514 00 34
Joris.Visser@dorotheum.com
31.10.2017 - 14:00
- Estimate:
-
EUR 8,000.- to EUR 9,000.-
A unique Ijaw Janus with two stylized crocodile heads.
Reference Prof. Herbert Cole: Ijaw (Ijo) water spirit mask (no comparable masks found in literature) very fine smooth patina. Lengh 78 cm, 11,5 cm high. A janus waterspirit headdress, probably a crocodile spirit, with wooden teeth inserted in open upper and lower jaws. The specific spirit’s name and characteristics cannot be known without collection data, but the Janus treatment is unusual, and may possibly point to a spirit of greater than average power - the principle being either “two heads are better than one” or “two heads can see forward and backward at the same time.” Such headdresses were lashed in a horizontal position atop the masker’s head and were often decorated with feathers and/or strips of cloth; these sometimes obscured the headdress. Typically, wild animal spirits were “tamed” and made more civilized during performance, taking on more human and benign characteristics toward the end of the play. The surface patina of this headdress suggests considerable use over time, but just how old it is cannot be determined.
Lit.:
see Anderson and Peek 2002.
Provenance:
Trullu. Austrian private collection. (VJ)
Specialist: Joris Visser
Joris Visser
+32-2-514 00 34
Joris.Visser@dorotheum.com
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| Auction: | Tribal Art - Source - Tribal and Curiosity Sale |
| Auction type: | Saleroom auction |
| Date: | 31.10.2017 - 14:00 |
| Location: | Vienna | Palais Dorotheum |
| Exhibition: | 25.10. - 31.10.2017 |