Senufo lute harp, Ivory Coast - Lot 138

  2. Result
  3. Senufo lute harp, Ivory Coast - Lot 138
  4. Lot n° 138 
Lot n° 138
Go to lot
Estimation :
1700 - 2500 EUR
Senufo lute harp, Ivory Coast - Lot 138
Senufo lute harp, Ivory Coast Wood, skin, metal, cords Height: 120 cm Provenance: French private collection A remarkably rare large harp whose resonance box rests on a hemispherical calabash covered with a taut skin. A long wooden neck of circular cross-section is attached to it, allowing the strings to be stretched from its end to an anthropomorphic bridge carved in the center of the body. The bridge has six holes for the strings, of which only two remain today. At the end of the neck, a female effigy carved in the round stands out with a headdress adorned with a circular metal plate, serving as a noisemaker. An exceptional instrument, it was traditionally used by diviners, combining ritual function with artistic quality. Father Knops writes in his 1980 book Les Anciens Sénoufo (1923-1935), describing harp types on p.176: "la Korr', à 6 cordes, abbréviatif de Korron', c.à.d. le chiffre 6". He is referring to the harp, not the bridge. Father Knops was not a linguist, although he did knew some Senanri, the language of the central Senufo region. His transcription is not in phonetic notation. One of the linguist researchers, Richard Mills Mills, who worked in the field for some fifty years, refers to the number 6 as Kɔ̀rᴐ́ni; in his Sénoufo-French dictionary, R. Mills also indicates that Kɔ̀ri (a word of Dioula origin) means: 1/ "cora with 6 strings superimposed in 2 groups of 3 strings each and of different lengths (it is made of a hemispherical calabash tended with goatskin)", 2/ "set of musical instruments for the hunters' dance (composed of 2 to 4 Kaanriga and 1 cora; the music, the folk group music, folk group or dance. These groups of hunters also exist extensively in present-day Mali, whose ancestors may have originated of Manding stock. Note: This harp-lute belonged to a Kaanritóo bandleader (op.ci. Mills) of the Sénoufo hunters' dance from the M'bengué region (north of Korhogo). Dressed in a talisman-covered tunic, he sings the praises of the hunters, tells short stories and performs at festivals and funerals. These harps often had a 6-hole bridge, carved with a human head in the Senufo style. In contrast, the neck here is exceptionally carved with an elegant female statuette, the style of which clearly displays refined, ancient workmanship from the northern Senoufo region. References - Senoefo Afrika Museum Berg en Dal, 1980, n°58 harpluit 96 cm - Senufo sans frontières, Gagliardi, Petridis, 2015, harp, no. 140 Collection C. et A. Lebas
My orders
Sale information
Sales conditions
Return to catalogue