Posted 9 years ago
ho2cultcha
(5051 items)
Here's another one of my finds from Urban Ore in Berkeley yesterday. I'm not sure what it is, but my best guess is that it's a beaded Zulu doll from South Africa. i'd love to learn something about it, whatever it is.
wow! this is a very large and old Ndebele inititiation doll from South Africa. probably from the 1950s. these are very valuable and sought after by collectors.
i've been researching this and this appears to be the real thing and relatively old. i thought it was 50s, but now am thinking earlier like 1930s/40s. it's not your average Ndebele doll, but a really, really good one!
Well done!!!... great find...love anything with hand done bead work!....:-)
thank you inky! i'm very happy w/ this interesting piece.
i was looking at auction values of dolls like this one recently and was astounded at what these old ones go for! i think that this one is worth at least several thousand dollars. shocked!
i need to find someone around here who can restore this. there are a few spots where the beeds are falling off and that odd hoop thing w/ smaller beaded hoops are falling apart. this Ndebele fertility doll is most like this one i saw which sold at Sothebys for over $12,000 last year. see how there are different patterns w/ the beads? i think that it's a sign of a very old one. this one has 5 hoops and each one is beaded in a different pattern. that's a very good sign, from what i could find out about them. i'd love some feedback from experts on this one. also if anyone knows a reputable bead restorer here in the bay area. thanks!
here's a pic of an obviously newer one than mine which is valued at 800-1000. https://www.antiquehelper.com/item/372482
i read on another site that ones like these were not made for tourists but for their use by the tribe.
here's an interesting article about the Ndebele and their art:
http://afritorial.com/tribe-the-artistic-ndebele-of-southern-africa/
i think that this doll is from the 1950s, which is considered to be very early.