Artists and Patrons In Traditional African Cultures African Sculpture - Donna Page (Author)

The oldest artifacts, terracotta sculpture from the Nok area of Nigeria, date from 500 B.C. to c. 200 A.D., followed by Sapi Confederation stone carvings dating from the 15th to the 17th century. Benin ivory and cast bronze objects were created during the 18th century, while the wood sculpture dates primarily from the 19th and 20th centuries. Many pieces in the collection are extremely rare; for example, a miniature Benin ivory leopard is one of only two in existence. In Artists and Patrons, objects from West Africa predominate. Many originate among the Mende, Sherbro and Temne of Sierra Leone. Other areas of Africa are well represented, by masks and figures from the Dan, Grebo and We in Liberia and Ivory Coast, for instance, and by sculpture from Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon and the Congo.