African Arts Gallery

African figure of undetermined sex, whose narrow silhouette has a rectilinear bust. The arms carved in fine relief run along the body, forming an angle at the height of the bent knees. Refined piece, imbued with the elegance of Dogon sculpture. Dark oiled patina, abrasions.
Carved for the most part to order placed by a family, the Dogon statues can also be the object of worship on the part of the whole community when they commemorate, for example, the foundation of the village. However, their functions remain little known. Alongside Islam, Dogon religious rites are organized around four main cults: the Lébé, relating to fertility, under the spiritual authority of the Hogon, the Wagem, ancestor worship under the authority of the patriarch, the Binou invoking the spirit world and led by the priest of the Binou, and the society of masks concerning the funeral.
Lit. : "Dogon" Hélène Leloup, ed. Somogy, Quai Branly Museum.