This 91-inch door is a monumental four-plank Nupe piece from Nigeria's Niger River basin, among the tallest in this group, hand-hewn from four vertical hardwood planks and braced across the reverse with horizontal timber battens. The carved face is dense with standing human figures across several planks, some in an arms-akimbo stance, alongside animal figures, a quadruped and a bird, and a series of arched or framed niche shapes filled with geometric lattice. This is the third door this session with human figural carving on a Nupe piece, alongside animal and geometric content that's more typical for the tradition. The patina is a deep, weathered brown consistent with genuine age and long handling. At 43 inches wide and 91 inches tall, over 7.5 feet, this is architectural-scale, suited to a great room, a stairwell, or any space with the ceiling height to let it run floor to near-ceiling, and dense enough with figures and pattern to reward viewing from multiple distances.
*Origin: Nupe tradition, Niger River Basin, Central Nigeria
*Era: Early-to-mid 20th century
*Material: Hand-carved hardwood
*Finish: Deep weathered brown patina, carved face, reverse braced with horizontal timber battens
*Dimensions: 43"W x 1"D x 91"H
*Condition: Genuine antique wear, structurally stable, original four-plank joinery and rear battens intact
A monumental antique Nupe door from Nigeria's Niger River basin, four planks carved with standing human figures, animal carving, and arched niche motifs, braced on the reverse with horizontal timber battens.
Q: What makes a large, multi-figure monumental Nupe door like this one more valuable than a smaller example?
A: Scale and figure density both play into it here, a 90-plus-inch four-plank door with several standing figures, animal carving, and framed arch motifs represents significantly more carving time and material than a smaller single or two-plank piece, and documented figural content on a tradition that leans mostly geometric adds real rarity on top of that. Condition and how well the original joinery has held up still matter as much as size alone.
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• **Please bear in mind that colors of products shown may vary slightly from their original color due to monitor display settings or photography studio.
