Lot 453
Burkina Faso. Copper alloy divination bracelet, formed as a twisted coil armlet surmounted by a pair of anthropozoomorphic twin figures, male and female. Each figure is rendered with relief eyes set to the sides of the head, projecting snouts, and stylized arms and feet that flare into webbed forms. The surface bears a dark, encrusted patina with accumulated deposits, consistent with ritual handling and repeated use in divination practices. Custom base. Published in Land of the Flying Masks with image. Small inventory tag on underside. According to Roy in Land of the Flying Masks: Art and Culture in Burkina Faso, such bracelets were worn by both men and women to secure the protective power of the spirits embodied in the figures. These spirits, like humans, exist in male female pairs. The bracelets may have been worn or dedicated to a shrine as offerings, and they were also employed by diviners as instruments through which to communicate with the spirit world. Size: 1-1/2"H. x 3-1/2"diam.
Provenance: Ex. Thomas G.B. Wheelock (1941-2016), NYC. and Nashville. Published: Christopher Roy & Thomas G.B. Wheelock. "Land of the Flying Masks, Art and Culture in Burkina Faso: The Thomas G.B. Wheelock Collection", 2007, p. 441, no. 394.
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#70453
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