John L. Severance Fund · The Cleveland Museum of Art
Image: public domain (CC0) · Museum record & image source ↗

Africa, West Africa, Mali, probably Djenné-Djenno, Inland Niger Delta culture-style maker · possibly 1300s–1600s

Male Figure

Creator not recorded by the museum

Date: possibly 1300s–1600s
Medium: Terracotta
Dimensions: Overall: 19.7 cm (7 3/4 in.)
Country / context: Mali
Movement / tradition: Sub-Saharan African arts
Collection: The Cleveland Museum of Art
Pathway: Sub-Saharan African arts ↗

FROM THE MUSEUM

Figures like this would have been used in rituals by the ancestors of the present-day inhabitants of the Inland Niger Delta. Representing the gods and kings or queens associated with the region’s former residents, the figures received prayers and offerings in exchange for their support. The seated position of this male has been interpreted as a harmful pose intended to bring death to an individual.

Collection text · The Cleveland Museum of Art · CC0

A MOMENT TO LOOK

Start with what you can see: shapes, surface, colour and scale. How might the listed materials affect the way this object was made and experienced?

Looking prompt · an invitation to observe, not a historical interpretation.

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