Standing male shrine figure

Description

wood, dark brown patina, kaolin, flat facial plane with encrusted sacrificial patina, “ichi” scarification marks on forehead and both face halves, slightly dam., minor missing parts, cracks (back of the head, back, base), piece of wood reinserted at the left heel, base;
apart from “ikenga” figures which are personal shrines carved for individual adult men, most of the Igbo figures were created to address community concerns, and most were collectively owned, if sometimes by lineages on behalf of a larger group. Most figural sculptures were housed in shrines dedicated to tutelary deities heading public cults and associated with parts of the natural world such as rivers, forests, the earth, or with days of the week and the markets held on them.