A Finely Carved ‘Boni’ Neck-Rest

Object Description

A Finely Carved ‘Boni’ Neck-Rest
Superb dark colour and patination through extended use
Wood
Somalia
19th Century

SIZE: 18.5cm high, 15.5cm wide – 7¼ ins high, 6 ins wide

Object History

Susan Montiel-Colmenares, London, circa 1970
Ex Private collection

Object Literature

CF:
Pierre Loos, Bayet et Caltaux, ‘La tête dans les étoiles. Appuis-Nuque d’Afrique et d’ailleurs’, BRUNEAF, 2012: pg. 101

These headrests are used by nomadic Somali men and women in southern Somalia and north-eastern Kenya. The male type, as in this fine old example, have a relatively small base and are therefore unstable, making deep undisturbed sleep difficult, and enhancing the men’s vigilance in the night. The women’s type have a more stable base.
The extensive Islamic influence in the region is reflected in the guilloche patterning carved on the sides of the headrest which ensures God’s protection for the sleeper.

Object Details