 Figure 2 SOLD |
 Figure 6 SOLD |
 Figure 7 SOLD |
 Figure 8 SOLD |
Figure 2 SOLD |
Figure 6 SOLD |
Figure 7 SOLD |
Figure 8 SOLD |
 Figure 11 SOLD |
 Figure 12 SOLD |
Figure 19 SOLD |
Figure 1 SOLD |
 Figure 9 56,5" SOLD |
 Figure 10 53.5" SOLD |
 Figure 16 30" SOLD |
 Figure 3 37.5" SOLD |
Figure 4 SOLD |
Figure 15 SOLD |
|
Figure 17 SOLD |
 Figure 23 SOLD |
Figure 33 SOLD |
 Figure 25 SOLD |
 Figure 30 SOLD |
 Figure 32 SOLD |
Figure 34 SOLD |
 Figure 21 SOLD |
 Figure 35 SOLD |
Figure 18 SOLD |
|
Figure 20 SOLD |
Figure 29 SOLD |
Figure 22 SOLD |
Figure 24 SOLD |
|
Figure 31 SOLD |
Figure 36 (PAIR), SOLD |
Figure 37 (PAIR), SOLD |
Figure 13 SOLD |
These Senufo figures show no evidence of age or use and were probably made to be sold.
The rhythm pounder (deble) from the Senufo people of the Ivory Coast was once a crucial prop in both commemorative ancestral rites and in initiations of adolescents to adult society; it was also a benevolent symbol of fertility and a conduit to the departed.
The few known male and female rhythm pounder pairs are thought to represent the primordial couple, referred to as 'Pombibele', which means "those who gave birth.
Typically it is female figures are represented and it has been speculated that these single figures are one of a pair, the location of the other being unknown. According to Anita Glaze (in Barbier, ed. 1993: 44), however, 'not all funerary sculpture is commissioned as a pair, nor do all relatively large scale processional display figures necessarily belong to the primordial couple category. A poro society may possess one or more single figures that were initially commissioned as a result of a member's visionary encounter with spirits in dreams or while alone in the fields.'
These pounders were traditionally used at funeral ceremonies for Poro society members. In some areas, they are actually pounded, at others, they are gathered at the center of the ceremonial grounds.
Sources: Sotheby's, A History of Art in Africa
Copied from the very informative site: www.randafricanart.com
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