Standing male figure "ihambe" ·  Nigeria, Tiv · ID: 3040969

Description

wood, base

“Ihambe” figures are set up individually or as a group in front of the family compound. The figures are closely associated with the senior wife/mother of the house. When the latter dies, the responsiblity for the figure/s devolves to the daughter-in-law.

Regarding their function there are different approaches. Some see them as incarnations of ancestors. Fagg calls them a kind of “tutelary village guardians” serving to protect the land and its fertility. Sieber recognizes that there is a symbolic relationship to manhood and virility. A mixture of all these functions seems to be correct.

The object Standing male figure “ihambe” with the object ID 3040969 was part of the auction 91 Tribal Art Auction on March 9, 2019. The object with the lot number 224 achieved a sales price of EUR 8,200 with an asking price of EUR 7,000.

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Comparing literature

Neyt, Francois, The Arts of the Benue, Michigan 1985, p. 162, ill. IV.1 ff.

Publications

Coppens, Martien, Negro sculpture, Amsterdam 1975, ill. 160