✅ SOLVED Lil Bronze people?

[Tflaherty]

I found these small metal people about 30 or so years ago in the basement of an apartment that I was renting that was located in a historic district of the city I live in upstate NY. The previous renter was a writer who disappeared and all of his belongings were either sold off or left to be stored in this basement. Among his belongings I also found black and white photos of him riding elephants on a safari. ( I do not have the pictures of this man or his name)

After finding the “bronze” people ( that is what I was told that they probably were made of) I went about trying to find out what they actually were with no luck.

They are 6 inches tall and very heavy. It looks like they may have been made from a sand mold.

If anyone has any information on what they might be that would be greatly appreciated.

 

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[CreakyDigger]

I wrote to a collector of African antiquities that I know, and sent him the link to this post. I'll let you know if I he responds...or he might respond directly to the link, I dunno.

 

[johnnyjohnson2043]

I'm wondering if they're something similar to Benin Bronzes or some other western African tribal art. A lot of this stuff was looted by British forces in the late 19th century and scattered across the world. I'd be curious to know what the African antiquities expert has to say, though.

 

[Plug N Play]

Something along these lines, I believe :

male and female Baule Ancestor statues

Also, Baule Blolo Bla

 

[CreakyDigger]

Hey, so, here is what I got back from my *expert* collector:

"Those are Benin bronzes but the quality is so poor it appears they were made from a mold of an original piece.
Early original pieces are about 1850, the Benin people were wiped out by the British in 1898 or so.
If the owner researches Benin Bronze Art they will see examples."

 

[Tflaherty]

Thank you so much! I will be doing some research into this.

 

[tamrock]

I think I'm gonna keep an eye out for those things in hopes of finding some old genuine pieces. I know I've seen them before in trift stores and antique shops and they really caught my interest, but not knowing really what they were and if they were old or just tourist souvenirs, I didn't buy them. Seems the genuine ones have some real value. Thanks for the good tips Creaky Digger.