A single piece of wood has been bent into shape to form this rare headrest, which consists of two beautifully flared legs and a slightly arched central neck support. Connecting the two constituent legs is a strand of strong bound fibre which acts both to hold the supports in place, and also as a handle to carry the piece as a symbol of status. When not required for sleeping, the headrest would have provided an impromptu stool. While later examples of such headrests were hand-carved into a similar shape, it is far less common to find this type of headrest which has been created through the time consuming process of soaking, bending and shaping of the wood.
H: 21cm
W: 8cm
Ex Private Collection, UK
Estimated Period: 1930's
Tom Phillips (Ed.), Africa: The Art of a Continent, p. 141
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