Shields
The Art of Protection
The Art of Protection
May 7 – May 29, 2026
Morgan Oakes Gallery • San Francisco
Not all shields are included in the catalog
Not all shields are included in the catalog
Featured on San Francisco Tribal
Wooden Yam Mask #1, Papua New Guinea
$1,400.00
Abelam Peoples, East Sepik Province
Circa 1930s/40s
Wood, pigments
14 x 6.5 in. / 35.5 x 16.5 cm
Height on custom display stand: 19 in. / 48 cm
This fine example of a classic Northern Abelam yam mask has a well-proportioned bulk and artistically clever headdress of two stylized hornbills. The mask shows good age, with a pierced nose and layers of pigment.
Abelam life is centered around year-long rituals associated with growing giant yams, their most important food source. The importance of yams is also reflected in the Abelam language by the large vocabulary used to describe the different varieties and growing phases. When harvested, long yams are decorated to represent spirits affiliated with their ancestors.
Domestic shipping included. International shipping quoted separately.
Chupícuaro Jar, Mexico
$550.00
Chupicuaro Culture, Guanajuato State
Pre Columbian, 400 BC – 200 AD
Clay with Red Slip
Dimensions: 8.75 diameter x 5.5 in./22 diameter x 14 cm
Inventory #bfcdb3
An elegantly proportioned, medium-sized vessel featuring two formed loops on opposing sides of the rim, likely designed for the suspension of a handle. It originates from a region in the western state of Guanajuato that was submerged when a large dam was constructed in the late 1940s.
Domestic shipping included. International shipping is quoted separately.
Wahgi Valley Shield, Highlands, Papua New Guinea
$3,600.00
Western Highlands, Papua New Guinea
Tapi wood, paint, rattan, wire
66 x 18.5 in. / 168 x 47 cm
Provenance: Scotts Valley, California Collection
"This war shield originates from the Waghi people, who called it kumb tapi — or 'wall shield.' Like many tapi shields, this example is notably old, with decades of use before being retrofitted with Western paint and metal wire. This adaptation reflects the incorporation of newly available materials into traditional warfare practices during the second half of the twentieth century.
The traditional clan design radiates from a central point, incorporating stylized local fauna — butterfly wings paired with a bird's feet motif, rendered as vertical sawtooth bands. The shield's design served as a means of individual identification among warriors, each unique interpretation of the clan’s pattern distinguishing one fighter from another.
Shipping quoted separately.
Featured on First Dibs
Deep Handmade Natural Onyx Bowl #16
$3,800.00
Handmade in Mexico
Carved from a single piece of onyx
One of a kind
Dimensions: 17 x 13.5 x 7d in. / 43 x 34 x 18d cm
A spectacular, organic, undulating vessel of cream transparent stone contrasted with brown and tan layers. The deep bowl is polished inside and out, has fluted sides and a live edge rim. Hand worked and polished to a thickness of 3/8 - 1/2 in./ .95 - 1.5 cm.
Shipping quoted separately.
Large Tibetan Storage Chest
$4,800.00
Tibet
Wood, Iron, Paint
19th C.
27 x 59.5 x 22.5 in./ 69 x 151 x 57
Height on custom display stand: 34.75 in./ 88 cm
Shipping quoted separately.
Coptic Hand Crosses, Ethiopia
$0.00
Ethiopia
Mid 20th century
Brass and Silver-plated copper alloy
#C70: 12 x 4.75 in. / 30 x 12 cm
Height on custom display stand: 13.25 in. / 34 cm
$375#C67: 10 x 3.75 in. / 25 x 9.5 cm
Height on custom display stand: 11.25 in. / 28.5 cm
$450#C68: 12.25 x 5.25 in. / 31 x 13 cm
Height on custom display stand: 13.75 in. / 35 cm
$625
Cariied by hand during services.
Domestic shipping included. International shipping quoted separately.
Cache-Sexe Papua New Guinea
$850.00
Culture, Papua New Guinea
Natural fibers, boar’s tails, and pigment
Mid 20th C.
Dimensions: 10 w x 12 h in./13.75 w x 14.5 cm
An unusual modesty skirt with a well-thought-out design. The red pigment accentuates the red in the hair on the boar's tails. Two blonde-haired tailpieces flank the design's central and most significant tail. Beautifully composed.
Domestic shipping included. International shipping is quoted separately.
Large Ammonite Fossil #HJA
$850.00
Madagascar
Jurassic - Cretaceous Period, 200 - 145 million years old
8.75 x 7 x 2 in. / 22 x 18 x 5 cm
Weight: 4 lbs 14 oz/ 2.065 kg
A custom display stand is available for an additional cost. Please use the “Inquire” button below to receive a quote.
Ammonites were cephalopods that resembled a squid with a shell. The predatory mollusks had eyes, tentacles, and spiral shells resembling a nautilus shell. They are closely related to an octopus without the shell. They existed for approximately 175 million years, appearing in the fossil record about 240 million years ago with the last descendants disappearing from the record 65 million years ago, at the end of the Cretaceous period.
Domestic shipping included. International shipping quoted separately.
Mukuba (Hat), Bwami Society, Lega Culture, Democratic Republic of Congo
$750.00
1st Half 20th Century
Plant fiber, buttons, elephant tail hair, blue cloth
7 x 7 dia. in. / 18 x 18 dia. cm
14 in. / 36 cm with chin strap
Height on custom display stand: 17.5 in. / 45 cm
The highest-ranking members of the Bwami society wore this type of hat.
Domestic shipping included. International shipping is quoted separately.
Our lifelong love affair with creatively designed objects continues.
Our interest in art began in the 1980s, but it wasn’t until Sheridan launched Other Options Design to offer custom bases to dealers and collectors that we became enamored with the artistry, range, and sheer beauty of tribal objects. Since then, our business has blossomed into its current iteration: Morgan Oakes Gallery, offering a curated collection of Tribal and Contemporary art objects and antiques, and Other Options Design Studio, now both located in a singular destination.
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