Senufo - Elfenbenskysten (Ingen mindstepris)

An extremely rare Senufo fertility guardian statue couple, collected in the region of Boundiali, standing on a domed base, the short legs slightly bent, a loincloth that only hangs over the buttocks, the female and the male genitalia indicated in detail, but the female breasts symbolically minimised and situated on the neck which is carved in rings, an elongated head with disc-shaped ears, long nose, narrow mouth and closed eyes, the hair designed as three prongs, red twine with cowrie shells on the ears and a necklace of beads or tubes around the neck; dark brown patina. Signs of age and use. Certificate of origin and provenance.

We are showing this guardian sculpture couple, which is a modified form of masks called degélé, for the first time in our gallery and we know of no other example. The masks only existed for a very limited time among the fodombélé, a small language group of the Senufo. Our Guaridian sculptures are fertility statues.

"Auf einer hohen Kalotte mit einer rechteckigen Öffnung, am unteren Rand steht jewils eine armlose männliche oder weibliche Statuette auf kurzen Beinen. Die Körper sind mit tiefen, rundumlaufenden Kerben versehen. Das erste Paar brachte Maesen 1939 nach Europa, ohne ihren Namen und Näheres über ihren Gebrauch erfahren zu haben. Zur Zeit des Massa-Kultes wurden ebenfalls weitere Exemplare aufgefunden. Insgesamt dürften kaum mehr als etwa 15 Exemplare in den öffentlichen und privaten Sammlungen existieren - davon nur wenige als Paar. Am bekanntesten ist das Paar im Museum Rietberg und das männliche Einzelstück der Sammlung Barbier/Mueller (Abb. Seite 217)." Quelle: B. Gottschalk, Kunst aus Schwarzafrika, Band 2, 2007, S. 191.

Translation to English: "On a high calotte with a rectangular opening, at the lower edge stands an armless male or female statuette on short legs. The bodies are carved with deep, all-round notches. Maesen brought the first pair to Europe in 1939 without having learnt their names or details of their use. Further examples were also found at the time of the Massa cult. In total, there are probably no more than around 15 examples in public and private collections - of which only a few exist as a pair. The best known are the pair in the Rietberg Museum and the single male specimen in the Barbier/Mueller collection (ill. page 217)." Source: B. Gottschalk, Kunst aus Schwarzafrika, vol. 2, 2007, p. 191.

Lit.: Burkhard Gottschalk, Senufo. Massa und die Statuen des Poro, 2002; Staatliche Museen der Preußischer Kulturbesitz, Museum für Völkerkunde Berlin, Die Kunst der Senufo, Elfenbeinküste. Mit einem Beitrag von Till Förster, 1990; Museum Rietberg Zürich, Die Kunst der Senufo aus Schweizer Sammlungen, 1988; Susan Elizabeth Gagliardi, Senufo unbound. Dynamics of art and identity in West Africa, Cleveland 2015, no. 121. B. Gottschalk, Kunst aus Schwarzafrika, vol. 2, 2007, p. 191, 216,217.

Height: 75 cm, the male is 76 cm
Weight: 4 kg, the male is 4,4 kg


Source: B. Gottschalk, Kunst aus Schwarzafrika, vol. 2, 2007, p. 217

Source: B. Gottschalk, Kunst aus Schwarzafrika, vol. 2, 2007, p. 216 (last photo sequence).