A TINY island in French Polynesia was the source of one of the big hitters of a Tribal Art sale at Sotheby’s Paris on June 22 when a stool sold for €900,000 (£750,000).
The auction was part of a group of ethnographica sales that chalked up over €12.5m hammer in the French capital over 48 hours.
The 19½in (49cm) long stool from Rurutu in the Austral archipelago, with a glossy patina, curved seat and legs terminating in hemispherical feet, is a sculpturally elegant form. However, like so much in the world of ancient artefacts these days, a large part of its value also lies in its early provenance.