March sale
Lot 30:
A Chinese Carved Rosewood Mask and a Makonde Tree of Life Sculpture
This lot comprises two carved wooden items. The first is a Chinese hand-carved rosewood mask, dating from the early to mid-20th century. The piece features a central grotesque face with a bifurcated moustache and a secondary smaller face to the left, both surrounded by a dense, flame-like foliate border. The eyes are inset with glass and the teeth are rendered in a contrasting light-coloured material, likely bone. The second item is a Makonde Tree of Life or Ujamaa sculpture, originating from Tanzania or Mozambique. Carved from a single piece of dark, dense hardwood, likely African ebony, the vertical pillar consists of multiple intertwined human figures representing ancestral unity. The figures exhibit stylised facial features and textured patterns on their bodies. Both items bear modern adhesive labels.
The Chinese mask shows surface wear consistent with age and handling, with minor chips and losses to the pointed extremities of the carving along the bottom and side edges. The Makonde sculpture is in good overall condition with a light accumulation of surface dust within the deeper recesses. Both pieces have adhesive labels attached to the front surfaces.
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