power and spiritual role

While each African nation has its own worship and rituals, the practice of handling objects is common to all. In contrast to the respectful distance usually accorded to Western sacrificial objects, African sculptures, masks and ritual objects are believed to be imbued with sanctity during the ceremony or ritual in which they were made, after which the sanctity is lost. So African artworks carry their traces. When they accomplish their ritual purpose, they are usually given a patina, which may be damaged and sometimes repaired. Evidence that really deals with ritual purpose is a value criterion that is more important than provenance, and significantly enhances African sculpture.

No matter how deeply entrenched the standards of Western aesthetics are, they should be set aside by African societies with the purpose of their artworks in mind. Just as art movements in Europe and Asia share certain distinctive features, art on the African continent encompasses a variety of cultures, each with its own range of craftsmanship, religion, social and cultural practices, available materials and practices. Therefore, caution and humility are required when viewing African classical art. The provenance of an item is reassuring, but not the only criterion of value. First, the appearance of the sculpture should be checked. A number of factors may point to a particular region of Africa, or even a particular society: the techniques used to work metal (in some cases) and wood (usually), and the nature of the latter, if one can determine; whether or not objects are painted Paint or oil; either rust or sharp edges. Research and attribution can also be guided by how the body is modeled. For each cultural region, specific groups can be identified through unique styles. Hence the need to look carefully; should this work be naturalistic? Are there prominent geometric lines? Are body parts particularly stylized and thus potentially highly symbolic?

While each African nation has its own worship and rituals, the practice of handling objects is common to all. In contrast to the usual respectful distance of Western cult objects, African sculptures, masks and ceremonial objects are believed to be imbued with sanctity during the ritual or ritual in which they are made, after which this sanctity is lost. So African artworks carry their traces. When they accomplish their ritual purpose, they are usually given a patina, which may be damaged and sometimes repaired. Evidence that really deals with ritual purpose is a value criterion that is more important than provenance, and significantly enhances African sculpture.

So African artworks carry their traces. When they have fulfilled their ritual purpose, they are usually given a patina, which may be damaged and sometimes repaired. Evidence that really deals with ritual purpose is a value criterion that is more important than provenance, and significantly enhances African sculpture. Since the beginning of the 20th century, the Western fascination with African classical art has led to the production of replicas to meet European needs - replicas stripped of their ritualistic character, so there is nothing that can give ancient African sculpture or mask its style and give symbolic power and strength.