Lot 115
115
PROPERTY FROM THE COLLECTION OF MR. AND MRS. RALPH F. COLIN
A KOTA RELIQUARY FIGURE, mbulu ngulu

Details
A KOTA RELIQUARY FIGURE, mbulu ngulu

With pierced triangular body surmounted by a Janus face image, one side with a concave oval face, crescent form eyes, triangular nose, small mouth; the other with convex forehead and concave lower face, round eyes, flaring crescent above curving side panels with projections below, the entire figure with unpolished brass sheets attached with staples to a wood core, thick dark brown patina at base, 24½in. (62.2cm.) high

Lot Essay

Perrois distinguishes this as category IV, variation 4 (see Perrois, 1986, p. 193).
Ralph and Georgia Colin were a remarkable couple who were deeply involved in the kaliedoscopic New York cultural scene that preceded and followed the Second World War. In 1962, Ralph Colin founded the Art Dealers Association of America, an association of the nation's leading dealers in works of fine art.