Zemanek-Münster

Protective figure "bateba yadawora"

Burkina Faso, Lobi
not available anymore
Provenance
Mark Eglinton, New York, USA
Antonio Fiacco, Fehraltorf/Zurich, Switzerland
Size
H: 53,5 cm
H: 21.1 inch

Description

wood, slightly shiny blackish brown patina, encrusted with clay, the right hand up to the mouth, the arm unnatural lengthened, a striking flat nose with the tip tapering to a point, unusual coiffure, slightly dam., insect caused damage in some areas, base;
“bateba yadawora”, the “sad bateba”, have nothing to do with sorcery. They show gestures of mourning, which the Lobi people show in according situations. It is said, that the “bateba” saddles itself with the harm, which otherwise its owner would have to suffer.


Comparing literature

Meyer, Piet, Kunst und Religion der Lobi, Zürich 1981, p. 104

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