A Bankoni Terracotta from the Segou region; greyish to ochre patina.

Specifically, the Bankoni style is a ceramic style that - along with the Djenne style - was the most important stylistic subdivision of the Mali Empire. The Djenne and Bankoni styles existed at the same time and the people of these two cultures lived around the cities of Djenne-Djenno and Bamako.
Djenne and Bankoni sculpture are of great importance in the development of West African art styles. We find seated, standing and kneeling human figures, as well as equestrian and zoomorphic/anthropomorphic sculptures. Djenne pieces tend to be naturalistic, while Bankoni sculptures tend to have elongated proportions. We know almost nothing about their culture, apart from their apparent sophistication. These cultures were obviously highly socially stratified. We find there signs of distinction and wealth such as scarification, jewellery, horses and prestige objects, and the sculptures themselves.

Lit.: Karl-Ferdinand Schaedler, Erde und Erz. 2500 Jahre Afrikanische Kunst aus Terrakotta und Metall, 1979, p. 62-69.

sold

Height: 32,5 cm
Weight: 3,67 kg

According to the UNESCO Convention of 1970, a claim for repatriation expires one year after the authorities of a country of origin have learned where and with whom a cultural object is located. Wolfgang Jaenicke Gallery therefore always informs about every newly imported object. Especially about the bronzes from Nigeria shown on this page, which are published in the internet and are accessible to everyone. Organizations dealing with restitution issues, but also freelance art historians employed by the state, such as restitution experts like Benedicte Savoy, are regularly informed about objects in the Galerie Wolfgang Jaenicke.

Every buyer of an art object, regardless whether it is made of wood, terra-cotta or bronze, must be aware that from a European legal perspective, traditional African art usually came from the respective African country of origin with insufficient export documents. Galerie Wolfgang Jaenicke, Berlin, tries to do justice to this dilemma by acting with the greatest possible transparency. The export policy of African states is problematic for art historical research, since African and European dealers usually work covertly due to diffuse legal situations and important information that was passed on from trade to science before 1970 tends to be lost.

In case of uncertainties, please contact the managing director of Jaenicke-Njoya GmbH, Wolfgang Jaenicke. It is in the interest of the gallery to clarify any questionable situation with all available means.