Staff Finial: Seated Figure

19th–early 20th century
Not on view
Returned to lender
This work of art was on loan to the museum and has since been returned to its lender.
When such figurative finials were collected by Europeans, not only was their specific history invariably lost, but they were often detached from their original staff. As a result, finials often survive as independent miniature sculptures on the most refined end of the spectrum of Kongo visual expression.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Staff Finial: Seated Figure
  • Artist: "Master of Concentric Circles"
  • Date: 19th–early 20th century
  • Geography: Democratic Republic of the Congo; Republic of the Congo; Cabinda, Angola
  • Culture: Kongo peoples
  • Medium: Ivory, metal
  • Dimensions: H. 6 1/2 in. (16.5 cm), W. 3 1/2 in. ( 8.9 cm), D. 3 3/4 in. (9.5 cm)
  • Classification: Bone/Ivory-Sculpture
  • Credit Line: Collection of Drs. Daniel and Marian Malcolm, Tenafly, New Jersey
  • Curatorial Department: The Michael C. Rockefeller Wing