Buffalo "boli" ·  Mali, Bamana · ID: 3036840

Description

of massive form with distinctive hump (reminding of a zebu cattle), min. dam., cracks, thick encrusted patina missing in some areas;
“boli” are intended to exert control over and direct various spiritual forces and energies (“nyama”) in order to affect outcomes. This “boli” is a visual manifestation of “nyama” - a thoughtful assemblage of spiritually charged materials. A wood support is wrapped with layers of cotton cloth, impregnated with organic substances. Then an earthen mixture is applied to the structure, building up the form. This crust may include not only mud or clay, but herbs and roots, minerals, animal parts (such as hair, fur, quills, claws), the blood of sacrificial animals (goats, chickens), sacrificial food offerings (kola, millet, alcohol), excrement, and even menstrual blood and pieces of placenta. This efficacious concoction of “nyama”-ladened substances activates the sculpture, drawing upon the powers of the bush, of the spiritual realm, and of the women.

Comparing literature

Colleyn, Jean Paul (Hg.), Bamana, Zürich 2001, p. 194