Ivorian Life-Sized Female Figure, Lagoons Region, Ivory Coast

The eyes inlaid with painted Cowrie (Cypraea moneta) shells.

Allan Stone, New York

Good condition for an object of this age and extremely rare type. Arms carved separately and attached with pegs at the shoulders, slightly loose. Losses to fingers on both hands. Age cracks including one to proper right side of the face and another running from from upper chest through proper right breast and extending down right side of the torso; these cracks with native repair of dark wood inlay. Some losses to inlay. Some surface losses filled including to outside of proper left arm as seen in catalogue illustration. Nail in proper right side of the face for stabilization of age crack. Marks, nicks, scratches, abrasions, stains, small chips and losses. Fine stained, aged dark reddish brown patina. Metal inlays are aged and oxidized. Shell inlays in eyes with scratches, and fine aged patina with remains of dark pigment.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The present figure is a rare example of the early fusion of traditional African sculptural canons and western visual influences, executed by a sculptor in the Lagoons Region of Ivory Coast circa 1900. The hairstyle, ringed neck, and scarification marks are consistent with traditional Lagoons region sculptural idioms and ideals of female beauty;  however the life-sized scale, naturalistic proportions, and integrally-carved pedestal reveal a European influence. This is one of three such sculptures presently known, which are so closely comparable stylistically that they can be attributed to the same hand.  During his travels in West Africa, Captain Alfred Walter Francis Fuller collected a closely related female figure circa 1900.  As his collection focused on Oceania, he donated the figure to the British Museum in 1951 (inv. no. "Af1951,28.1", see Visonà 2005: 60), where it remains.  William Fagg surmised that the Fuller figure was carved by an Anyi (Agni) artist influenced by a naturalistic European style, possibly for use as a mannequin in an Abidjan shop.  A third example was sold at Loudmer-Poulain, Paris, November, 22, 1979, lot 130.