Nigeria (No reserve price)

The Dakakari people of northwestern Nigeria have practiced funerary sculpture for several centuries. These works were traditionally placed on the funerary mounds of important members of society. Chiefs, warriors, and prominent farmers were honored by these sculptures. Animals, humans, and horsemen were the most common subjects, all created by women artists. This pair of female figures, known as the 'pots of the tomb', is rendered in a highly expressive style and could thus represent spirits of the bush that would have accompanied the deceased in the afterlife, ensuring him a trouble-free journey. The uplifted heads and outstretched hands suggest a dancing posture, referring to the festivities linked to secondary funeral rites in honor of the deceased. The heads, torsos, and legs of these objects were shaped separately and then assembled by additional layers of clay.