Standing female figure ·  Sierra Leone, Mendé · ID: 3037532

Description

wood, rich blackish brown patina, the neck carved with rings, high towering coiffure arranged in fanciful plaits, incised tattoos on forehead and cheeks, slightly dam., minor missing parts, cracks, abrasion of paint (face, breasts), missing parts through insect caused damage (head), traces of cuts on breasts and belly;
for quite a long time virtually all figures from the region have been called “minsereh” and have been associated with “yassi”. According to a newer research approach found by W. A. Hart they rather belong to a Mende society called “njayei”. This association keeps pairs of figures, male and female, known as “lomba” and “kambei” respectively. Such figures are said to represent both deceased members of the association and, in some sense, the associations ancestral spirits, possibly the original founders of the local chapter.

Littérature comparée

W. A. Hart, Sculptures of the Njayei Society among the Mende, in: African Arts, 26 (Juli 1993), p. 46-53+86