Bamun Palm Wine Gourd Antiqu African Container Cameroon Start Price USD 295.00 Current Price USD 295.00 Time Left - Bid Count 0 Buy It Now Price - Reserve Price - Start Time Thursday, July 24, 2008 End Time Thursday, July 31, 2008 Location Santa Fe, NM See more about 'Bamun Palm Wine Gourd Antiqu African Container Cameroon' Description   Bamun Bamileke Old Palm Wine Gourd VesselAntique African Container - Tribal Art - Cameroon     A Beautiful Old Bamun Palm Wine Gourd with Reed Basketry, Excellent ConditionAntique African Art - Utilitarian Container - Cameroon Grasslands Collected from the: Bamun peoples of the Cameroon Grasslands, West AfricaMaterial: Gourd, woven reeds, pigment, residue from usePeriod: Very early 20th centuryDimensions: 15.75" height, 9" outermost diameter; weight is 1.00 pound Condition: Excellent, exquisite signs of age, wear and extensive tribal use. Held in private collection since its original 1940's field acquisition, the near perfect condition reflects the obvious high regard the original owner held for this splendid piece. A single hairline frature does not penetrate through to the interior, this area tests stable with no further threat to the integrity of this fine gourd anticipated - see the center photo below for a close inspection. Gorgeous swirls of color from patina, pigment, indigenous soil and the residue of use - the glorious skin oil patina produced a rich luster around the snout handle - an altogether splendid specimen ! Ginzberg notes, "The Cameroon gourds are used particularly for palm wine. The elegant natural forms (which can be influenced while still growing) are sometimes enhanced by weaving straw reeds around them, used for gripping. The intricate woven patterns can be seen as a work of art in itself." Please click on the photos below to fully appreciate this delightful old piece! And be sure to see the amazing AFRICAN CONTAINERS in our eBay store! Or explore our exciting AFRICAN SCULPTURES! Click Images to Enlarge Bamun Bamileke Tribal History“The grassland region, in south-west Cameroon, is a hilly and mountainous area covered by an equatorial forest in the south and a savannah in the north. Politically, the area is divided into numerous small independent kingdoms and chiefdoms, whose powers are counterbalanced by male and female societies. Since its colonization by the Germans in 1884, this entire region, in particular the Bamileke, Bamun, and Tikar territories, has attracted the attention of Western scholars because of its artistic heritage. The sultanate of Bamun is ruled by a single, sacred king, known as the Fon, who resides in the capital Fumban. He is assisted by three officials and seven hereditary councilors to rule their 80,000 people. The artistic production of the people living in the Grassland of Cameroon is closely associated with royal and societal ceremonies. Large figures, thrones, and prestige paraphernalia are used by the king to assert his power. Each autonomous kingdom has developed a specific artistic style,” according to Bacquart. Most Bamun art (and the work of other kingdoms of the Cameroon Grasslands) relates to kings and important chiefs, who defined their power by the display of prestige objects during important ceremonies. The motifs used include leopards, human figures and heads, spiders, lizards and other subjects plus abstract designs. The spider, often found abstracted in repeating patterns, is a symbol of wisdom. The leopard; cunning, fast, mobile and guardedly aggressive, signifies the ability to survive and is the most important royal icon, often even the king's alter ego. 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