261091 - Very old & Rare Ethiopian Haile Selassie painting on canvas - Ethiopia

Large-format traditional Ethiopian folk painting on cotton fabric.

It depicts a cavalry scene featuring Haile Selassie on a beautifully adorned white horse, flanked by horsemen carrying lances and the Ethiopian national flag. It exhibits the characteristic bold colors and flat, narrative visual style of Ethiopian painting; a green background framed by an orange border.

Technique: Tempera/gouache on cotton fabric (unframed, rollable)

Dimensions: 184 × 84 cm

Date: Presumably first half 20th century, with certificte of autenticity.

Condition: Clear signs of age and use – extensive areas of abrasion and paint loss (primarily in the lower section of the image), creases and fold marks; edges partially frayed with small tears. Unframed. See photos.

Provenance:

From the collection of the Haas diplomatic family; held in the family for decades. Wilhelm Haas (1896–1981) worked at the German Embassy in Addis Ababa starting in 1925; subsequently owned by his son, Dr. Gottfried Haas (1943–2016). The biographies of both previous owners are publicly documented (Wikipedia)