West Africa, Nigeria, Yoruba peoples, ca. mid 20th century CE. A remarkable ceremonial staff carved from wood with a double-headed axe finial supported by two seated figures boasting a rich shade of chocolate brown. Carrying an infant strapped to her posterior, the top figure is shown kneeling on an ovoid plinth with both arms positioned upwards and bent at their elbows to hold up the axe heads. Her sizable, pointed breasts hang from her chest below a stylized visage featuring a flat nose, full lips, and bulging, heavy-lidded eyes. A square headdress incised with a diagonal motif and painted a vibrant shade of cobalt caps her head, sitting behind her intricately formed ears. Below her, a smaller figure sits with his knees drawn up before him and his hands placed on his shins as he balances her plinth on his oblong head. He presents a similar visage to the woman above him, exhibiting protruding lips, a broad nose, detailed ears, and swollen eyes under a heavy brow. Size: 4.75" W x 20.125" H (12.1 cm x 51.1 cm); 23.25" H (59.1 cm) on included custom stand.

His plinth sits atop a cylindrical form that acts as the handle of the staff. Both figures' faces are adorned with incised striations, likely representing face paint or ritual scarification.

A staff like this is called an Ose Shango staff, carried and danced with by members of the Shango cult. Shango is the Yoruba deity of thunder and lightning, and the figures carved on the staff were intended to represent a worshipper of Shango.

Provenance: private New York, New York, USA collection; ex-Dr. Edward A. Spiegel (1931-2020) collection, Professor of Astronomy at New York University and Columbia University

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#162169

Expected nicks/chips and abrasions as shown. Otherwise, excellent and intact with lovely earthen deposits and liberal remains of pigment.