Antique Tribal Dance Shield, Tutsi, Rwanda

Tutsi Ceremonial dance shield. Rwanda-Burundi Second quarter, 20th century. Wood, natural pigment Measures: 20” long x 7 1/4” wide x 4” deep (50.5 x 1...

Early finely carved African Afikpo mask with stylized geometric abstract long face. From Nigeria close to the Cross River. From an old collection in the Southwest. Overall dimensi...

A early 20th century wooden dancing shield of the Tutsi, Rwanda, painted with earth pigments The shield is in good condition with traces of tribal use Straight line height 30 cm, wid...

A monumental, rare and important Oceanic Papuan Asmat People tribal carved war shield from the first half of the 20th century, collected from the coast of the headhunting tribe in Papua New Guinea, a Provincial Indonesian island in the mid 20th century. Among the Asmat, war shields are the most powerful symbolic element of a warrior's equipment, and have many layers of meaning. Traditionally, they were functional items used to protect warriors in battle by deflecting an enemy's spears and arrows. The carved and painted images on the surface of the shields were also intended to frighten the enemy and symbolize the power of the ancestors. Ancestral imagery appears on multiple forms of Asmat art...