?Final Price Realized includes Buyer’s Premium added to Hammer Price
Estimate: $ 3,000 - $ 5,000
POSSIBLY BELONGING TO A SLAVER SLAVERY AND ABOLITION Ebony (or lignum vitae) wood cane, 32-1/2 inches long; carved ivory handle 3-1/4x1-1/2 inches, warm patina. Depicts a group of four male slaves. Portuguese Loanda (present day Angola), circa 1830-1870
a rare piece of nineteenth century ivory carving, depicting three male slaves, two of which are joined at the neck by a "koffle,"or chain. A third has a wooden restraint around his neck; his hands shackled and attached by some sort of "leash" to a fourth native who is, no doubt their captor. This distinct style of carving is ascribed to the artisans of Loanda and was produced during the relatively short period of 1830 to 1870. Loanda was the coastal region along the mouth of the Congo River, in what is present day northern Angola and southern Democratic Republic of Congo. The Loandan ivory carving most often seen are the spiral-carved "story," tusks that show figures circling around from the bottom to the top, often with slavery themes. These ivories were produced strictly for European consumption, rather than having any tribal use, and were often carved "to order."
