Seated male figure "lü mä" ·  Côte d'Ivoire, Dan - Yacouba · ID: 3047920

Description

wood, black paint, metal, elaborate original repair (crested hairstyle), cracks, base

“Lü mä” (“wooden person”) are portraits, mostly of living people, whose name the figures bear. Portraits are not to be understood in the sense of our western understanding of art. Rather, they are typified figures that become a specific individual through certain features (scarification marks, particular hairstyle, etc.).

Owning figurines was considered a status symbol by the Dan and was associated with hosting a big feast for the community.

The object Seated male figure “lü mä” with the object ID 3047920 was last part of the auction 96th Auction at April 24, 2021 on Zemanek-Münster Auction house and had the lot number 185.

You can find more Figures and other popular object types on our related topic pages. You may also be interested in our page on African art.