Carved Tusk

René Withofs (1919-1997), Brussels, Belgium, after 1947-1960 [1];

His sale, A Highly Important Collection of African Art Chiefly from the Belgian Congo, Sotheby & Co., London, May 30, 1960, lot 34;

With Mathias Komor, New York, stock no. 5808, by October 22, 1960-1961 [2];

Purchased from Komor by The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, 1961.

NOTES:

[1] According to the African Heritage Documentation and Research Centre database, www.ahdrc.eu, Withofs began dealing in African art in 1947.

[2] According to a letter from Mathias Komor to Laurence Sickman, Director, October 22, 1960, Nelson-Atkins curatorial files, Sickman and Curator Ralph Coe had recently visited Komor’s New York shop. During the visit, they saw a number of objects that had been reserved by another museum, some of which had since been released and were now available, including this ivory tusk. Komor’s label is attached to the object.