Female figure "jo nyeleni" ·  Mali, Bamana · ID: 3050344

Description

wood,

“Nyeleni” figures are property of the “jo” - society. They are used during “numu jo” initiation performances that take place every seven years. During the performance, the initiate children are “killed” and fully formed men are “reborn” into the community as “children of jo” (“jodenw”).

The new initiate then spent the next few months traveling to neighboring communities, spending two to three nights in a village while dancing and singing to display his knowledge of “jo” and to earn gifts of money or food.

“Jo nyeleni” figures were carried by the dancers during the performances or placed in the background as a kind of backdrop. They represent the ideal image of a young woman at the peak of her physical bloom. The figures were intended to increase the visual appeal of the performance and to convey the suitability of the initiates as potential husbands.

The object Female figure “jo nyeleni” with the object ID 3050344 was last part of the auction 101st Auction at November 11, 2023 on Zemanek-Münster Auction house and had the lot number 203.

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