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THBLuba Wood Mboko Offering Vessel, ex-Israel Museum
Lot 70
About Seller
Artemis Fine Arts
686 S Taylor Ave, Ste 106
Louisville, CO 80027
United States
Selling antiquities, ancient and ethnographic art online since 1993, Artemis Gallery specializes in Classical Antiquities (Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Near Eastern), Asian, Pre-Columbian, African / Tribal / Oceanographic art. Our extensive inventory includes pottery, stone, metal, wood, glass and textil...Read more
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Live Auction in Progress ... Currently on Lot Estimate:
$1,000 - $1,800
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About Auction
Live
By Artemis Fine Arts
Aug 22, 2025
Set Reminder
2025-08-22 10:00:00
2025-08-22 10:00:00
America/New_York
Bidsquare
Bidsquare : Indigenous Art - Ralph T. Coe Center, Santa Fe, NM
https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/artemis-gallery/indigenous-art---ralph-t-coe-center-santa-fe-nm-20324
Featuring works of art from the Ralph T. Coe Center for the Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico, a non-profit focused on promoting Indigenous Arts globally. All proceeds from the sale of these items will support future grants to Rehoming Program participants. Artemis Fine Arts info@artemisfinearts.com
Featuring works of art from the Ralph T. Coe Center for the Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico, a non-profit focused on promoting Indigenous Arts globally. All proceeds from the sale of these items will support future grants to Rehoming Program participants. Artemis Fine Arts info@artemisfinearts.com
View Full Catalog (452)
- Lot Description
Central Africa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Luba culture, ca. early 20th century CE. A finely carved wooden offering vessel (mboko) from the Luba people, depicting a seated female figure with her legs extended forward and slightly bent at the knees to support a large, round bowl. The vessel may have once held white chalk or other ritual substances, offerings to the ancestors or spirits. The figure wears the elaborate Kaposhi hairstyle, associated with Luba chiefs and the wives of high-ranking leaders, rendered here with precise, textural detail. Among the Luba, such bowl bearers commemorate the first mythical Luba diviner, Mijibu wa Kalenga. Used primarily by royal diviners, these mboko vessels served as sacred oracles, designed to forecast future events and reveal hidden knowledge. During divination rituals, the chalk or offerings held within the bowl acted as a conduit between the diviner and the spiritual realm. Size: 8.9" L x 5.3" W x 7.2" H (22.6 cm x 13.5 cm x 18.3 cm)
This example reflects the Luba's profound integration of beauty, symbolism, and authority in ritual art. The female figure's serene expression, upright posture, and carefully modeled features embody ideals of dignity, wisdom, and composure - qualities essential to the diviner's role. As both a functional oracle and a commemorative figure, this mboko offering vessel stands as a testament to the Luba belief that knowledge and power are inseparable from the art that gives them form.
Provenance: Ralph T. Coe Center for the Arts, Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA, acquired in 2010 via descent; private collection of Ralph T. Coe, Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA, purchased in September 1999; ex-Taylor Dale Gallery, Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA; ex-Samuel Dubiner collection, Israel Museum, Jerusalem, Israel
All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.
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#196357Professionally repaired with repainting over some break lines and others visible. Chipping to toes and abrasions in areas, but, otherwise, excellent presentation with good detail and light patina. Old accession number from the Israel Museum on back.Condition
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