Funnel/Clyster

Possibly Johann Gustav Friedrich Umlauff (1833-1889), Hamburg, Germany, by 1889 [1];

With the dealer Boris Kegel-Konietzko (1925-2020), Hamburg, Germany, no. K59 [2];

Purchased from Kegel-Konietzko by the dealer Marc Leo Félix, Brussels, Belgium, no. FX990205, by December 1999 [3];

Purchased from Félix by Donald (1927-2007) and Sally (1930-2017) Tranin, no. 102, Kansas City, MO, December 23, 1999;

By descent to their son, Ed Tranin, Leawood, KS, and their daughter, Laura Tranin, Seattle, WA, by 2014 [4];

Their gift to The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, 2014.

NOTES:

[1] According to Marc Leo Félix, in documentation provided at the time of the object’s purchase, NAMA curatorial files. Founded by Johann Gustav Friedrich Umlauff (1833-1889) in 1869, the Umlauff Museum (also called the Umlauff Kaufhaus) operated until 1943 under the direction of Johann Gustav Friedrich’s son, Johannes Umlauff (1874-1951).

[2] According to the African Heritage Documentation & Research Centre database, www.ahdrc.eu, the Umlauff family sold their business to Lore Konietzko after World War II. Konietzko ran Lore Konietzko Exotische Kunst, which she later renamed Lore Kegel Exotische Kunst following her divorce from Julius Konietzko (1886-1952) and marriage to Dr. Georg Kegel (1898-1974). She renamed the business again – to Kegel and Konietzko – when her son, Boris Kegel-Konietzko (1925-2020), joined the company. Félix most likely purchased this stool from Boris Kegel-Konietzko, who took possession of his mother’s company in 1964, although it is unclear whether the stool was part of the company’s stock, or the Kegel-Konietzko private collection.

[3] Félix's stock number is written on the inside of the funnel.

[4] This object was offered by the Tranins as lot 93 in Art d’Afrique, d’Océanie et d’Amérique du Nord, Christie’s Paris, December 10, 2013, but failed to sell.