Featured Looking for ID Help - British East India Metal Carved Head

I purchased the remnants of an antique/collectibles shop that closed in the mid nineties. Along with all the other standard stuff you would expect from a place like this I found this metal head, in a box marked "British East India Ca. 1820". The owner of the shop was meticulous in marking these things and seemed to know what he was doing so I think that's accurate. It appears he purchased it in London in the early 80s. There are no markings and it measures approximately 16 inches tall. Unfortunately I have no idea how to assess value on this thing. Any thoughts? Thanks - Nate

 

Hello Nate, welcome to the forum.
Your bronze is likely to be Naga, a name for ca 35 tribes in northeastern India and northwestern Burma (Myanmar). It looks like a Shaman's piece, full of symbolism. The birds are hornbills, native to the area.
The Naga were headhunters until British missionaries put a stop to that in the 19th century. This is just speculation, but your head could have something to do with the headhunting cult.
It is rare to find a Naga bronze of this size, and it is quite valuable. Is there a museum in your neighbourhood you could go to for a good assessment (they usually don't give values)?
Here is some Naga art:
https://underthebo.com/antique-arts-from/nagaland/
https://www.dorotheum.com/en/auctio...linth-from-the-property-of-a-naga-shaman.html

General information on the Naga:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naga_people

 

Wonderful piece!
And a wonderful identification!

PS - AJ, thanks for the link to the Naga - I knew that there was a large enclave of Protestantism in that part of the world, but I wasn't aware that they were Baptist............for some reason I thought Methodist. Thanks for clearing that up for me. Though after reading some of the cultural history, I can see why Baptist would be preferred over Methodist!~

 

I know the baptists do some evangelical work but Baptist headhunters is new to me

 

It's Benin, an Osun spirit head.

http://www.britishmuseum.org/research/collection_online/collection_object_details.aspx?assetId=498445001&objectId=617479&partId=1


https://chiefdrdaryl.wordpress.com/2016/08/12/benins-osun-god-of-magic-medicine/

https://www.google.com/search?biw=1908&bih=898&tbm=isch&sa=1&q=benin+osun+head

 

Thanks for the help, I will do some more research

Thanks

Nate

 

Thanks for the help, much obliged

Thanks

Nate

 

You're right anundver.
It reminded me of Benin, though not as finely made as most Benin heads. The scar tattoo also looked African, but can be found in Asia. I googled Benin head and came up with the classic queens, warriors, etc. nothing like this gentleman.
Then I thought it must be British India, as the box said. Looked at the birds, which look exactly like Naga bronze hornbills, and there I was, going in an entirely wrong direction.
That's the way it goes sometimes, so thank you for the second pair of eyes. And my apologies to Nate, for leading you to a bunch of headhunters...

 

No worries, thanks for the help.

Thanks

Nate