Mali : African Bozo Fish Marionet.

Hand carved from a single piece of colorful painted wood.

Long : 48 cm.

This is a fabulous Bozo Fish Puppet that comes from Mali. Bozo Fish Puppets are used by the people of the Bozo tribe of Central Mali to tell the stories of their tribe. The young men’s association is responsible for the masquerades after the harvest is finished. A week of song and dance with these puppets recounts the history of the group. Villagers come together to celebrate. Puppets are brought out, and competitions are held to find the best performers. Tribal history, customs and morals are taught through the puppets. Bozo puppet headpieces such as these were performed during the Sogo Ba masquerade. Dance troops of young men, members of local youth groups, sing, dance, drum, manipulate puppets or dance masks in creating performances called Sogo Ba. Though considered to be a form of entertainment the performances are directed towards a description of the moral universe and the imperfection of humans and the need to educate people as regards ethical behavior and how to attain a religious way of life and how to maintain social and familial stability. Performances include religion, history, observations of local contemporary political events, satire of behavior and simple entertainment through the music and dance. The headpiece is a complex carving with a number of motifs presented and emphasized through the use of bright colors and expressive sculpting of the facial features and metal decorative pieces.

Our Africa-gallery specialized in Ethiopian tribal art, collected and sell tribal used art from all over Africa and special from Ethiopia.

Our Gallery have a collection of authentic, original and traditional art from Africa. This collection including masks, statues, pottery, musical instruments, manuscripts, headrests and other antique, primitive art and various unusual items.

I hardly ever buy direct from Africa. All my items that I sell are old and (tribal) used. My objects come from European and American private collections, auction houses, fellow dealers and other collectors from around the world.

This site gives you an impression of our stock and activities. Authentic, museum quality African tribal art at wholesale prices

We strive to provide deeper public appreciation for high quality African art and to make it accessible to all collectors.

High quality masks, carvings, statues, fetishes, animal figures, ritual objects and bronzes displayed here will add beauty to any home and value to any collection.

In addition, an ever-growing demand for rapidly disappearing original African tribal art makes it a sound investment.

As long-time experienced collectors, we carefully select and authenticate every artifact. Shown here are original, high quality, hand-crafted pieces made of wood or bronze which can be yours at a fraction of gallery prices! Years of traditional use added distinction to many of them.

We guarantee the authenticity of every item and your complete satisfaction. We make every effort to research and document the history of each artifact.

In our gallery you will find a nice selection of our stock. If you find something that is not on the site, let us know. We always have a large stock of items that are not on our site.

Please let us know if you do not see items you want. We may be able to find them for you.

Stand - The stand is not included in the price, you can buy it via the "stands" button.

Payment - PayPal preferred. For other payment methods please contact us before bidding. 

Shipping - We ship worldwide. We try and get shipments out as quickly as possible after payment, usually shipping four times weekly. 

Combined shipping - For buyers of multiple items please email us when done shopping for your combined invoice with reduced shipping fees. For urgent deliveries we can arrange courier shipments via DHL (additional charges incurred to be covered by the buyer). 

Delivery – Delivery to most destinations is anywhere between 2 to 8 business days inside Europe and 16 to 21 business days to the rest of the world, after receiving our email confirmation that the item has been shipped. Parcels shipped from the Netherlands are sent using the Post NL and the parcel status is traceable online. 

Refunds & Returns – We are aiming for your complete satisfaction. If for any reason you are not 100% satisfied with your purchase please return the item to us for a complete refund or exchange. No hassles, no questions asked. Refunds will be issued via PayPal or by Bank only. The shipping cost are not refund. 

Please Contact Us – For any questions, concerns, or clarifications before bidding on or purchasing an item. We are usually able to respond within 24 hours. To avoid spam filters please establish initial contact through the eBay messaging system. 

Thank you for visiting our site!

Kind Regards,

Gijs van Kuijk