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113 - FANG Ngil mask.
See original version (French)

Estimate €3,000 - €5,000
Sale commission
Description
FANG Ngil mask. 20th century. Height: 61 cm. An IR spectroscopy dating certificate (G. Matthaes patent) from the Museo d’Arte e Scienza, Milan, no. 1AS-9357, indicates the date 1920 ± 8 years. Light wood covered with white kaolin. Traces of carving with an adze are visible on the inside of the mask, which is surrounded by small holes used to attach the raffia garlands for camouflage. The slightly domed forehead, the eyes carved as a thin horizontal slit, the exaggeratedly long nose, and the mouth, carved horizontally across the lower part of the face in an expression of disdain, give the mask as a whole a stern air, creating the impression that it is scrutinising the depths of our innermost being. Provenance: Pierre Redouin Collection. Bibliography: Published in *Le Souffle des Esprits*, Les Éditions de l’Amateur, Pierre & Hadrien Redouin, 2012, p. 63. Description: The white kaolin patina evokes the spirit world, the world of the invisible. The long, imposing nose adds to the severity of the face, emphasised by the mouth and the eyes, which are stretched horizontally. During the colonial era, the French were nicknamed ‘long-nosed’ by the Fang people of the Oyem region. Herein lies the origin of the mask’s form. Indeed, there is more than one similarity between the white coloniser and the ngil: - Both are white in colour; - Through the administrative and military authority he wielded, the white coloniser had the power to compel obedience, just as the ngil enforced compliance with his decisions; - Both the ngil and the coloniser acted with violence, one to punish, the other to pacify.
See original version (French)
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About the sale The Breath of the Spirits: The Collection of Pierre Redouin and Others
Auction location
Auction time 09/24/2026 at 2:30 PM
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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