A terracotta sculpture of zoomorphic bird shape, Nigeria, in the style of Nok, the clawed feet are perched on a rounded base, a curved body with necklaces and bracelets wrapped around, the left hand is holding a rope, the right hand is holding an object, the waist is wrapped with a clothloin, a small tubular neck carries the oval shaped head with typical Nok features of triangular eyes, pointed nose and a beak like mouth, the hair is pulled back and short. Inside the sculpture is packed earth.

"In 1943, tin mining in the vicinity of the village of Nok near the Jos Plateau region of Nigeria brought to light a terracotta head, evidence of the oldest known figurative sculpture south of the Sahara. Although stylistically related heads, figures, animals, and pottery shards have been found in a number of Nigerian sites since that time, such works are identified by the name of the small village where the first terracotta head was discovered. Artifacts continue to be unearthed without documentation of the context in which they were buried, a lack of extensive archaeological study that has severely limited our understanding of Nok terracottas. One of the earliest African centers of ironworking and terracotta figure production, the Nok culture remains an enigma.

Most Nok sculpture is hollow and coil-built like pottery. Finely worked to a resilient consistency from local clays and gravel, the millennia-long endurance of these ancient objects is a testament to the technical ability of their makers. This is not to say that Nok sculpture has survived unchanged by time. The slip (the mixture of clay and water used to give pottery surfaces an even texture) of many Nok terracottas has eroded, leaving a grainy, pocked exterior that does not reflect their original smooth appearance. Most of the Nok sculpture found consists of what appear to be portrait heads and bodies fragmented by damage and age. The recovered portions of the baked clay bodies that have survived show that they were sculpted in standing, sitting, and genuflecting postures."

Department of the Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas. “Nok Terracottas (500 B.C.–200 A.D.).” In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/nok/hd_nok.htm (October 2000)

Bernard de Grunne, The Birth of Art in Africa, Nok Statuary in Nigeria. Here a picture of Bird man.

sold

Height: 59 cm
Weight: 10,5 kg