(*) Mario Fantin (Bologna 1921 - 1980) He was a famous mountaineer, researcher, photographer, cinematographer and director from Bologna.In 1954, he participated in the Italian expedition to reach the peak of K2 withArdito Desio and Achille Compagnoni. After that, he dedicated himself full time to mountaineeringand ethnography, participating in a great deal of expeditions all over the world. He went to theAndes, the Sahara, equatorial Africa, and Greenland among many other places. He produceddocumentary films and published more than twenty monographic works about Italian mountaineeringin the world, from exploration to the ethnography of all the continents. In particular,he organised expeditions to Africa. In 1959-60, he scaled the peak of Kilimanjaro. In 1961,he went to Egypt and Somalia; in 1962, Chad and Tibet; in 1963, Ivory Coast and Kenya; in 1964 western Africa. At the start of the ‘60s, he collected many works in central Africafrom Baulé, Guro, Yoruba, Yaka groups to name but a few.In 1973, he put a series of sculptures on display at an exhibition organised at the Pro Arte gallery. Before his death, he sold many of his works to his friend andcompatriot, Morigi. A dozen are illustrated in Sotheby’s catalogues for the sale of the Morigi collection in Paris, during June and December 2005. A further 5 are illustrated in this catalogue: lots A further 35, 55, 56, 67, 73.