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121 - Double figure - Lobi - Burkina Faso Provenance: Private coll…
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Estimate €200 - €300
Sale commission
Description
Double figure - Lobi - Burkina Faso Provenance: Private collection, Sylvia and Henry, Gygax, Switzerland Dimensions: 36 cm This anthropomorphic sculpture stands out for its singular design and probable architectural or cultic function. Carved from dense wood with a dark patina of age, it represents a slender figure with features characteristic of the Lobi-Birifor cultural area: a voluminous head, almond-shaped eyes with hemmed eyelids, rounded shoulders and a body reduced to simple, powerful volumes. The work features a second head sculpted at the lower end, arranged in the opposite direction to the main figure. This janiform construction, rare in classical Lobi statuary, suggests a symbolic function linked to mediation between different planes of the world - living and ancestors, visible and invisible - rather than a simple anthropomorphic representation. A particularly remarkable feature is the presence of a rectangular tenon on the side, which is incompatible with a stand-alone presentation. This protrusion seems to have been used to embed the sculpture in a larger structure: a doorpost, a domestic altar, a shrine support or an architectural element associated with the cult of the thila, the tutelary spirits who protect the community and the family. Unlike the bateba, which was intended to stand alone, this figure appears to have been designed as part of a ritual ensemble that has now disappeared. Its enigmatic nature and double effigy reinforce the hypothesis that it was an object of protection or spiritual mediation fixed within a sacred structure.
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About the sale ARTS OF AFRICA & OCEANIA: Three exceptional family collections
Auction location
Auction time 06/22/2026 at 2:00 PM
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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