Mumuye Female Figure, Nigeria

Allan Stone, New York

Very good condition for an object of this type and age. Stable vertical age cracks including one running down the back proper right side of the head into the shoulder, and another from the middle of the back between the legs and another to inside of proper left foot. Cracks on either side of the face and to coiffure/ear elements. Surface cavity above the proper right eye. Minor marks, nicks, scratches and abrasions consistent with age. Fine lustrous dark brown patina, with remains of white pigment in the face.
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.

Henry Moore's exploration of African art, and in particular Mumuye statuary, is well-documented in his Notebook of 1922-24. Moore's rejection of the classical tradition and the Greek ideal in sculpture lead to his interest in the art of primordial cultures. Moore recalled (quoted after James 1966: 57): "The world has been producing sculpture for at least some thirty thousand years. Through modern development of communication much of this we now know and the few sculptors of a hundred years or so of Greece no longer blot our eyes to the sculptural achievements of the rest of mankind [...] giving us a world view of sculpture never previously possible."

Page 105 from No. 3 Notebook 1922-24 attests to Moore's fascination with Mumuye statuary, featuring two drawings of a Mumuye female figure in the British Museum, London. Almost thirty years later, when he recognized the same figure in an exhibition of African art, Moore still pointed out the artist's spatial economy in rendering the human form (quoted after James 1966: 173): "The [Mumuye] seems to me one of the best from this point of view," he said. "The carver has managed to make it 'spatial' by the way in which he has made the arms free and yet enveloping the central form of the body."

The Mumuye statue from the Allan Stone Collection is a masterful example of this "spatial economy" invented by Mumuye artists.