Standing figure

Description

wood, greyish brown patina, characteristic form and posture, proportionally small head with disc-shaped ears and massive crest, incised scarification marks, slightly dam., minor missing parts (mouth, nose, left ear), abrasion of paint, base;
Mumuye effigies have several functions. They reinforce the traditional power of the elders and grant a priviledged status to the family group who ownes them. The most important function of these sculptures is to watch over the family enclosure and to protect its inhabitants as well as guests who are allowed to enter. The effigy, through the intermediary of the soothsayer or healer, intervenes in healing practices in times of sicknesses or epidemics. In the family context, they may also exercise a judicial function: the statue honors truth and frustrates the traps set by a liar or a thief.