Standing female figure "lü ma" ·  Côte d'Ivoire, Dan · ID: 3032748

Description

light brown wood, dark brown patina, metal teeth, scarifications on back, abdomen and neck, min. dam., traces of insect caused damage, on wooden base;
wooden figures, called “lü ma”, are not thought to represent ritual ancestors or spirits, they are rather portraits of living persons, even carrying the name of the represented human. Typically a portrait of a woman esteemed by her husband - a chief or important figure - who commissioned the work from a sculptor. The husband would take possession of it with some pomp, then hide it away jealously, showing it only on special occasions.

Comparing literature

Fischer, Eberhard, Himmelheber, Hans, Die Kunst der Dan, Zürich 1976, ill. 172 Johnson, Barbara C., Four Dan Sculptors, San Francisco 1987, p. 79, ill. 22