African Carved Figure with Snake

This tall wooden sculpture of a woman from the South Ndebele peoples in South Africa is a wonderful old carving with so much detail. The woman's large oval face is trimmed with pieces of hammered metal over her carved eyebrows and on her cheeks. The eyes are large ovals painted white (which have darkened to off-white over the years). Her mouth is painted red; there are painted red circles on the right side of her face and yellow ones on the left. Both colors are faded and a bit worn. The head itself is concave on the back.

Around her head is coiled a snake that appears to be biting her on her forehead. The snake is incised with crescents representing scales and has painted red eyes. This carving may memorialize a Ndebele woman who met her death by snakebite. There are a number of venomous snakes in the province, such as black mamba, cobras and boomslang.

The woman's neck is incised with grooves painted yellow that represent metal neck rings called dzilla. The real coils are made of a gold and brass alloy and are worn by the women in the tribe not only to stretch their necks, but also as a status symbol and an important part of their native dress.

The large oval head measures 9 1/2 inches high and 9 inches across, while the neck and base are 7 inches tall, with the base diameter 3 1/2 inches. The statue's total height is 16 1/2 inches; it weighs 1 3/4 pounds and stands firmly upright on its base.

It's in very good condition with a small chip in the wood on the back of the head. There is also a two inch long split near the chip; the split was also on the upper front and was filled in sometime in the past, either by the carver or a later owner. It now appears a trail of black above and onto the snake. The yellow paint in the neck grooves is flaking, but there is no damage or missing pieces, just the expected wear on this very old piece. It's one of the more impressive and decorative African pieces we've offered for sale.

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