Anthropomorphic figure "jagana"

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Description

wood, pigments, base

Sculptors in Nigeria’s Benue River Valley created such bold interpretations of the human form in a multitude of variations.

Although the role such works originally played is undocumented, and therefore remains unclear, the primary one that has been attributed
to them is as an oracle. Mumuye sculptural works, which range in scale from 20 to 160 centimeters, appear to have been deployed for a variety of needs, including divination, healing, and protection.

The figures enhanced the influence and reputations of leaders
and religious specialists in Mumuye society by furthering their efforts to predict the future, heal the sick, and make rain fall (according to Arnold Rubin).

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Comparing literature

Rubin, Arnold, in: For Spirits and Kings: African Art from the Paul and Ruth Tishman Collection, ed. Susan M. Vogel, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York 1981), p. 155.

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