Imposing Traditional Terracotta Vessel - Kambia / Yuur - Kassena or Nankana - Ghana (No reserve price)
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€ 2
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Selected by Julien Gauthier
A decade of experience in historical arms, armour, and African art.
Estimate € 150 - € 200
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Imposing Traditional Terracotta Vessel, a late 20th‑century Ghanaian piece attributed to the Kassena or Nankana people (Kambia / Yuur), weighing 4.5 kg and measuring 31 cm high by 35 cm wide and 35 cm deep, in fair condition with original/official authenticity and provenance from a private collection.
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Description from the seller
This imposing globular terracotta vessel exemplifies the celebrated ceramic heritage of the Gurunsi-speaking peoples of the Upper East Region of Northern Ghana - specifically attributable to the Kassena or Nankana communities of the Kassena-Nankana district (centered around the famed potting and mural-painting village of Sirigu) - dating to the late 20th century. Masterfully hand-built by female potters utilizing ancestral coil-construction techniques and smoothed with calabash fragments (wanzagsi), the vessel is defined by a taut, spherical belly transitioning seamlessly into a short neck with a gently flared, everted collar rim. A refined, minimalist horizontal register composed of two parallel incised linear grooves encircles the upper shoulder, carved into the damp clay prior to firing. The pot was fired in an open-bonfire reduction using millet straw, followed by traditional organic smothering and an application of indigenous plant infusions, producing a rich, variegated soot-black reduction patina with subtle satin burnishing.
With a substantial weight of 4.5 kg, the vessel functioned within the domestic compound as a utilitarian container for brewing, fermenting, and storing sorghum beer (pito), as well as serving as an evaporative cooling vessel for drinking water. The unglazed interior retains its coarse, textured earthenware body with visible scraping striations, while the round, unfooted base was engineered to rest naturally in the soft earth of the compound floor or upon woven ring supports. The pot presents in authentic, field-collected condition: the everted rim displays characteristic chipping, abrasions, and old shallow losses consistent with decades of ladle access and domestic handling, while the exterior shows light surface scratches, localized contact rubbing, and warm terracotta under-tones peeking through the blackened skin. Structurally stable, sound, and free from modern repairs, this vessel constitutes a commanding example of northern Ghanaian sculptural pottery, celebrated for its monumental simplicity and organic materiality.
PROVENANCE
Property from the Estate of a German biologist and naturalist (presumably field-collected in situ, Ghana, 2008).
Thence by descent to the present owner.
This imposing globular terracotta vessel exemplifies the celebrated ceramic heritage of the Gurunsi-speaking peoples of the Upper East Region of Northern Ghana - specifically attributable to the Kassena or Nankana communities of the Kassena-Nankana district (centered around the famed potting and mural-painting village of Sirigu) - dating to the late 20th century. Masterfully hand-built by female potters utilizing ancestral coil-construction techniques and smoothed with calabash fragments (wanzagsi), the vessel is defined by a taut, spherical belly transitioning seamlessly into a short neck with a gently flared, everted collar rim. A refined, minimalist horizontal register composed of two parallel incised linear grooves encircles the upper shoulder, carved into the damp clay prior to firing. The pot was fired in an open-bonfire reduction using millet straw, followed by traditional organic smothering and an application of indigenous plant infusions, producing a rich, variegated soot-black reduction patina with subtle satin burnishing.
With a substantial weight of 4.5 kg, the vessel functioned within the domestic compound as a utilitarian container for brewing, fermenting, and storing sorghum beer (pito), as well as serving as an evaporative cooling vessel for drinking water. The unglazed interior retains its coarse, textured earthenware body with visible scraping striations, while the round, unfooted base was engineered to rest naturally in the soft earth of the compound floor or upon woven ring supports. The pot presents in authentic, field-collected condition: the everted rim displays characteristic chipping, abrasions, and old shallow losses consistent with decades of ladle access and domestic handling, while the exterior shows light surface scratches, localized contact rubbing, and warm terracotta under-tones peeking through the blackened skin. Structurally stable, sound, and free from modern repairs, this vessel constitutes a commanding example of northern Ghanaian sculptural pottery, celebrated for its monumental simplicity and organic materiality.
PROVENANCE
Property from the Estate of a German biologist and naturalist (presumably field-collected in situ, Ghana, 2008).
Thence by descent to the present owner.
Details
Indigenous object name
Kambia / Yuur
Ethnic group/ culture
Kassena or Nankana
Country of Origin
Ghana
Period
Late 20th century
Material
Terracotta
Sold with stand
No
Condition
Fair condition
Title of artwork
Imposing Traditional Terracotta Vessel
Height
31 cm
Width
35 cm
Depth
35 cm
Weight
4.5 kg
Provenance
Private collection
Authenticity
Original/official
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