Staff Finial

CultureKongo

Datelate 18th century

MediumIvory, metal (?) and glass beads

Dimensions8 × 2 1/2 × 2 5/8 inches (20.32 × 6.35 × 6.68 cm)

Credit LineGift of Adele and Donald Hall

Object number2025.33.7

On View

Not on view

Terms

DescriptionA female figure kneels on top of this carved cowry-ringed staff finial. She holds a bottle or calabash in the proper right hand. Diamond-shaped scarification decorates her upper torso, and a single strand of large cowry shells circles her neck. The lips are large, the eyes inlaid. A hat with a radial pattern adorns the head.

Staff finials topped hardwood staffs and were symbols of rank and authority.Provenance

Provenance

Collection Jean-Claude Bellier (1930-2021), Paris, France;

Private Collection, Paris, France, until 2007;

Sold, Arts Premiers et Art Précolombien, Pierre Bergé & Associés, Brussels, December 19, 2007, unknown lot [1];

Private collection, until 2009;

Purchased at sale, Arts d'Afrique et d'Océanie, Sotheby's, Paris, June 17, 2009, lot 103, by Adele (1932-2013) and Donald (1928-2024) Hall, Kansas City, MO, 2009-2024;

Their gift, through the Donald J. Hall Revocable Trust to The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, 2025 [2].

NOTES:

[1] Advertisements in Tribal Art Magazine (Autumn, 2007 edition) and in La Revue both feature the staff finial as being part of the December 19, 2007 auction held by Pierre Bergé & Associés. The sale, according to text in Tribal Art Magazine, consisted of "the remaining portion of objects from the Francine Maurer Collection." Possession of the sales catalogue will help clarify ownership prior to the sale and lot number.

[2] Prior to being formally accessioned into the collection, the object was a promised gift made by the Hall family in 2009 in honor of the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art's 75th anniversary.

Published References

Cecile Jacquot, et al., Les Ivoires: évolution décorative du Ier siècle à nos jours, deuxième partie (Paris: Tardy, 1977), 405, (repro.).

Tribal Art Magazine, "Upcoming Sales," Tribal Art Magazine (Autumn, 2007): 25, (repro.).

Pierre Bergé & Associés, "Art Premiers et Art Précolombien," La Revue (Brussels, October 2007): 32, (repro.).

Sotheby's, Arts d'Afrique et d'Océanie (Paris : Sotheby's, June 17, 2009), 56-57, lot 103, (repro.).

Sotheby's, Sotheby's at Auction: Worldwide Highlights (New York, 2009, Vol. 1), 143.

Giovanna Poletti, "L'arte delle tribù," Antiquariato, (August 2009): 28, (repro.).

Marc Leo Felix, White Gold, Black Hands, Ivory Sculpture in Kongo, Vol.I (Heilungkiang: Gemini Sun Qiqubar, 2010), 152, figs.192a-c, (repro.).

David A. Binkley, A Private Passion: The Donald and Adele Hall Collection of African Art (Seattle: Marquand Books, 2015), 166-168, (repro.).

Information about a particular artwork or image, including provenance information, is based upon historic information and may not be currently accurate or complete. Research on artwork and images is an ongoing process, and the information about a particular artwork or image may not reflect the most current information available to the Museum. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about a particular artwork or image, please e-mail provenance@nelson-atkins.org.