Standing female figure "jo nyeleni"
Mali, Bamana
not available anymore
Size
H: 55,5 cm
H: 21.9 inch
Description
wood, brown patina, body with massive shoulder/breast area, slightly dam., rep. (right hand), cracks (some of them spread with mass), on plate;
the “jo nyeleni” figures embody the spirits of the women who once founded the cult of “Jo”. They represent the ideal of a beautiful young woman. The figures appeared at big initiation festivities which only took place in a seven years turn. Mask figures called “yodenw” used to carry them from one village to the other, accompanied by the sound of a special gong, called “mango”.