Africa (Room 25)

The Sainsbury Galleries

The diverse cultural life of Africa has been expressed through everyday objects and unique works of art since ancient times. The Museum’s collection of over 200,000 African items encompasses archaeological and contemporary material from across the continent.

Highlights on display in Room 25 include a magnificent brass head of a Yoruba ruler from Ife in Nigeria, the Tree of Life (a sculpture made out of guns) and some objects from the Torday collection of Central African sculpture, textiles and weaponry.

Image captions (clockwise from top left):

Ndop, wooden carving of King Shyaam aMbul aNgoong late 18th century

Tree of Life, Made by Kester, Hilario Nhatugueja, Fiel dos Santos and Adelino Serafim AD 2004

Burnished pots late 19th - early 20th century AD

Ivory mask probably 16th century AD