- 37
Parure frontale cérémonielle, probablement Nuxalk, Bella Coola, Colombie Britannique, Côte nord-ouest
Description
- Parure frontale cérémonielle, probablement Nuxalk, Bella Coola
- wood , mother of pearl
- haut. 20 cm, prof. 21 cm
- 7 7/8 in, 8 1/4 in
Provenance
Transmis par descendance
Condition
"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. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."
Catalogue Note
Ici la sculpture, remarquable par sa qualité, sa densité et la richesse de l'iconographie, a pour motif central un corbeau dont les pattes s'ouvrent sur une petite tête et encadrent un visage humain zoomorphe. L'oiseau est lui-même dominé par une tête arborant une couronne de chaman, l'ensemble est animé par des fragments d'haliotide et rehaussé de pigments noirs, bleu vert et vermillon appliqués traditionnellement. Cette parure très ancienne, vraisemblablement sculptée dans un bois de cèdre, se distingue également par les rares motifs noirs peints au revers, évoquant le plumage de l'oiseau.
Voir Sotheby's (New York, mai 2014, n° 4) pour une parure frontale comparable, illustrant, comme ici, « des évènements relatifs à la rencontre d'un ancêtre avec des êtres surnaturels dispensateurs de richesses et de privilèges dans les temps mythiques » (Mauzé, « Trois destinés, un destin » in Gradiva, n° 7, 2008).
Ceremonial frontlet, probably Nuxalk, Bella Coola, British Columbia, Northwest Coast
According to Bill Holm (The Box of Daylight: Northwest Coast Indian Art, 1983, p. 19), 'from the farthest north-western reach of Tlingit country [...] to the middle of Vancouver Island, chiefs wore crowns of as elegant and as rich a material as the sculptors' skill could create. The features of the headdress are the same wherever it is worn: a cylindrical frame – often made of strips of whale baleen and covered with cloth – adorned, on the back, with a long train of white ermine pelts and a spectacular plaque carved of hardwood, painted and inlaid with abalone shell on the forehead. This plaque, or frontlet, is carved to represent an emblematic or mythical character surrounded by a flange that is usually covered with inset plates of brilliantly iridescent abalone shell. Inlays of the same shell flash from the eyes.'
The carving of the offered frontlet is remarkable in its quality, and density and richness of iconography, which consists of a central raven motif, the legs of which open onto a small head and frame a zoomorphic human face. The bird itself is topped by a head wearing the crown of a shaman, with the whole composition animated by fragments of abalone and accented with traditionally applied black, blue-green and vermilion pigments. This very old frontlet, probably carved from cedar wood, is also notable for the rare black painted motifs on the back, which evoke the plumage of the bird.
See Sotheby's (New York, May 2014, lot 4) for a similar frontlet which, like the offered lot, depicts 'events relating to the encounter of an ancestor with supernatural beings, dispensers of wealth and privilege in mythical times' (Mauzé, "trois destinées, un destin" in Gradhiva, No. 7, 2008).