One of a Kind

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Hover to zoom Rhino, a walking rhinoceros carved from teak wood by Chewa carvers in Malawi, with a smooth polished body and two horns

Malawi, Southern Africa · Chewa Tribe

Rhino

Name: Rhino
Brand: York's Shona Gallery
SKU: SF001
Price: 2700.00 USD
Availability: InStock

Piece #SF001 · Year Made: 1987

$2,700

Shipping individually quoted

Origin

Malawi, Southern Africa

Period

Late 20th Century

Medium

Hand Carved Teak Wood

Length

9"

Width

26"

Height

12"

Details & Materials

Carved from one solid piece of teak in Malawi, "Rhino" carries the weight and calm of the animal itself, an imposing form that anchors any room it stands in.

The rhinoceros holds immense value in African society as the second biggest living land mammal after the elephant. Farming communities draw on the traits of both the solitary, aggressive black rhino and the sociable, territorial white rhino in how they think about leadership, and the Mapungubwe gold rhino served as an emblem of sacred leadership in a class based society. Today rhinos are critically endangered and widely protected.

Condition: Excellent, not previously owned, undamaged
Sourcing: Fair Trade
Certificate of Authenticity: Available Upon Request
Provenance Report: Available Upon Request

Shipping

Buy now and leave the shipping to us. At checkout you pay for the piece plus a shipping deposit. We then plan the packing for your piece and email you the remaining shipping balance. This applies to both domestic and international orders. Every shipment is tracked, and most deliveries need a signature.

Domestic: 5-8 business days
International: 10-14 business days
White-glove delivery available on request

Care & Placement

Dust with a soft, dry cloth. Keep away from radiators, direct sunlight, dampness, and any sudden change of temperature. Do not place in extremely cold areas.

Place the piece on a level surface

Authenticity guaranteed, every piece verified

Packed and shipped by our team, insured and tracked

New York City gallery, est. 1983

Origin

Malawi

Southern Africa

"When I was first exposed to African art, I felt a deep connection to it. It is hard to explain. It resonates with me spiritually."

Michael, Founder

York's Shona Gallery was the first in New York City to bring African sculpture to American collectors. Every piece in our collection is acquired directly, ensuring authenticity and fair exchange with the artists and communities who create them.

Origin

Malawi, Southern Africa

Tribe / Artist

Chewa Tribe

Medium

Hand Carved Teak Wood

About the Tribe

Chewa Tribe

Stone Sculpture

The Chewa Tribe is arguably the most prolific tribe in Malawai. Chewa, the primary language, has become the official language of Malawi, as it is taught in schools in addition to English. There are many other languages spoken in the region, especially in the north, where one would hear a lot of Tumbuka.

Art in Malawai predominantly involves three-dimensional sculpture rather than painting or drawing. The human figure is the focus of Malawian art and can be found everywhere from the earliest rock paintings to traditional wooden carvings. Abstract forms are common, as artists seek to represent the metaphysical; and symbolism is frequently used to aid representation of gods and other beings.

Carving skills are passed on each generation, and the pieces take many forms from plaques representing Malawian and African scenes, to chiefs' chairs. These traditionally feature ornate carvings of animal, dances, and daily village life. Carvings are prized by collectors not just for their traditional representations, but also for the relatively rare hardwoods from which they are made.

View all Chewa Tribe pieces

The Tradition

African Wood Carving

Wood has long been the great sculptural material of Africa. Carved from a single trunk, each piece carries the grain of the living tree and the marks of the hands and tools that shaped it.

Across the continent, carving was never only decoration. Figures, stools, doors, ladders and headrests were made to be used, and each was carved with the care given to a work of art. Every people developed its own language of form, so a piece can often be traced to the people who made it by its shape and pattern alone.

The skill passes from one generation to the next, usually from a parent or an older relative. Today the same hands carve animals, furniture and decorative pieces alongside traditional forms, working dense hardwoods such as ebony, teak, jarrah and cherry.

The work is done by hand, most of it with an adze, a short axe with the blade set sideways, and finished with knives and chisels. Most pieces are cut from one block with no joins, so the form follows the shape of the tree. Some woods are also burned, which darkens the surface and brings out the grain, and every piece deepens in tone with handling and age.

Wood: Ebony, teak, jarrah, cherry and local hardwoods
Made: By hand, from a single block
Tools: Adze, knife and chisel
Made for: Ceremony, decoration and storytelling

A carver working with a mallet and chisel, a carved wooden door behind him

Hands carving a small wooden figure with a knife

A carver cutting a pattern into a wooden panel with a chisel

The woods we carry

Ebony wood

A dense, heavy wood that grows slowly, with an almost black heart and pale outer wood from the same log that carvers often use together in one piece

Teak wood

A strong hardwood of warm golden brown, resistant to weather, that deepens in tone with age

Jarrah wood

A very dense, deep red hardwood that darkens to a rich reddish brown as it ages

Cherry wood

A wood with a fine, even grain and a warm reddish tone that grows richer the longer it is exposed to light

View all wood sculpture

Animals in African Art

The Significance of Animals

In African art an animal is rarely just an animal. It can stand for a king, a clan, an ancestor or a lesson, and its meaning changes from one people to the next.

Many families trace their roots to an animal. Among the Shona of Zimbabwe, every clan has its own animal, such as the lion or the elephant, and people do not eat the animal of their clan out of reverence.

Animals also carry power. In the Benin Kingdom, the king is known as the leopard of the house, and leopards were once kept at the royal palace. In Cameroon, the elephant stands for the power of chiefs. In Mali, carved antelopes celebrate farming and the people who work the land.

Animals are also used to teach lessons. In Ghana, children grow up with stories of Anansi, a clever spider whose adventures teach right from wrong.

Hundreds of years ago, carvers in Zimbabwe made tall birds out of stone. Today one of those birds is the symbol of the country and appears on its flag. Shona sculptors often carve animals, and figures that are part person and part animal.

Stands for: Power, family, and a good harvest
Teaches: Right from wrong
Seen in: Masks, brass figures, stone and wood sculpture

Ancient rock engravings of giraffes and a human figure

Two people walking toward a herd of elephants

A black panther resting on a tree branch

Animal symbols

Nigeria

Leopard

A symbol of the king

Cameroon

Elephant

A symbol of power

Mali

Antelope

A symbol of farming and a good harvest

Zimbabwe

Lion

A family symbol for many Shona clans

Rhino

Malawi

Chewa Tribe

Surfaces

Pedestal

Styled with and outdoors

Rooms

African Wood Carving

The Significance of Animals

Rhino

Malawi

Chewa Tribe

Surfaces

Pedestal

Styled with and outdoors

Rooms

African Wood Carving

The Significance of Animals

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