Description
The Igbo people are known for their elaborate system of ranked titles for both men and women. Climbing within this hierarchy requires considerable investment of resources, social capital, and time. Titles come with responsibilities and restrictions but also with privileges that include the right to regalia and status objects such as this stool. Comprising two levels of interlocking supports carved from a single block of wood, this stool was acquired by an Irish missionary in Nigeria before 1911.
Provenance
John Reilly, Nigeria and Ireland, by about 1910 [this and the following according to statement from Axis Gallery in curatorial file]; given to his sister, Ellen Lanney (died 1974), County Meath, Ireland, after 1910; by descent to her daughter, Marie Lanney, Ireland, 1974; given to her son, Niall Kieran, Ireland, about 1990; sold, Bonhams, New York, NY, Nov. 9, 2011, African, Oceanic, and Pre-Columbian Art, sale 19412, lot 313, to Ms. Kenny Mann, Sag Harbor, NY; sold to Axis Gallery, New York, NY, 2012 [according to personal correspondence from Axis Gallery in curatorial file; Igbo, Milan: Five Continents, 2013, p. 130, plate 7]; sold to the Art Institute, 2013.
Accession Number
218594
Medium
Wood, iron nails, and traces of pigment
Dimensions
57.2 × 36.2 × 35 cm (22 1/2 × 14 1/4 × 13 3/4 in.)
Classification
stool (seating furniture)
Credit Line
African Decorative Arts Fund
