A bone sculpture - Ewe - Togo (No reserve price)

Female anthropomorphic bone sculpture, Ewe Origin: Southeastern Togo Material: Bone, dense organic material, honey-brown to dark brown in color. Description This Ewe anthropomorphic object takes the form of a long, slightly curved piece, carved in high relief around a cylindrical base. The surface has a honey-brown to dark brown color, highly polished in places, with light beige deposits in the recesses and incisions. The main figure is a standing woman, depicted in profile or three-quarter view. Her head is voluminous, with a high forehead, elongated eyes, a prominent nose, and a slightly open mouth. A long hairstyle composed of incised vertical strands cascades down her back. Her prominent breasts, rounded belly, and the shape of her hips explicitly emphasize her femininity. Her right arm hangs down alongside her body, while her other arm appears to reach toward or support the circular vessel positioned above her head. This small vessel at the top serves an essential functional purpose: it is hollowed out and contains a genuine cavity. Two engraved horizontal lines mark its rim. At the back, a sculpted arm extends upward toward the vessel, as if the woman were carrying and stabilizing a load on her head. The lower part of the composition features a second small human figure, much smaller in scale, positioned against or in front of the main woman's legs. This hierarchical arrangement thus combines a large female figure, a vessel, and a secondary figure. Historical and Artistic Analysis In the Ewe cultural context, human representation is not merely an individual portrait. Sculptures can play a role in religious and social systems involving ancestors, deities (voodoo), protection, destiny, healing, and family lineage. The National Museum of African Art holds several figures attributed to Ewe artists from Togo and Ghana, demonstrating that figurative sculpture is indeed part of this region's artistic repertoire. These works may be made of wood, pigmented, or covered with sacrificial materials. The woman carrying a vessel constitutes the symbolic center of the composition here. In many West African art traditions, the gesture of carrying a container on the head can evoke food, water, offerings, or domestic and ritual responsibility. It would nevertheless be methodologically excessive to automatically attribute this sculpture to a specific deity. Among the Ewe, religious systems are diverse: they include ancestor worship, vodu or trõ, Afa divination, lineage shrines, and various sacrificial practices. Claude Rivière specifically highlights the diversity of rites, offerings, religious specialists, and recognized powers among the Ewe of Togo. Stylistically, the artist favored a narrative sculpture over strictly naturalistic anatomy. The feminine forms are accentuated, while the legs and torso partially merge with the vertical mass of the base. The incisions in the hair, belt, and vessel create a graphic contrast with the polished surfaces of the face, abdomen, and breasts. This alternation of relief and smooth areas reinforces the vertical reading of the object. Ritual Function and Interpretation The presence of a small, actual vessel at the top suggests a function beyond the purely decorative. It could be a small ritual receptacle, an element intended to hold a substance, a powder, an oil, plant materials, or a small offering. In the religious practices of southern Togo studied by Albert de Surgy, ritual materiality is fundamental: objects can hold substances, libations, plant or animal materials, and become vehicles for relationships between humans and invisible powers. The apparent absence of a thick sacrificial crust and the overall polish could also indicate a prestigious use, whether domestic or ceremonial. The small figure located in the lower part could be interpreted as a child, a dependent, or an ancestral figure. The emphasis placed on femininity could evoke fertility, motherhood, lineage continuity, or the feminine capacity to nurture and pass on traditions. In Ewe societies, the body, kinship, and relationships with spiritual powers can be closely intertwined. Sandra Greene's historical work on the Anlo-Ewe also demonstrates the extent to which women's roles, kinship, and religious affiliations have contributed to the transformation of the region's social structures. Selected Bibliography Rivière, Claude. Religious Anthropology of the Evé of Togo. Lomé/Abidjan: Nouvelles Éditions Africaines, 1981. de Surgy, Albert. Nature and Function of Fetishes in Black Africa: The Case of Southern Togo. Paris: L'Harmattan, 1994. de Surgy, Albert. Geomancy and the Cult of Afa among the Coastal Evhé. Paris: Publications orientalistes de France, 1981. Spieth, Jakob. The Religion of the Eweer in Southern Togo. Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1911. Greene, Sandra E. Gender, Ethnicity, and Social Change on the Upper Slave Coast: A History of the Anlo-Ewe. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 1996. The publications mentioned serve for comparative art historical classification. They do not establish the specific cultural attribution, dating, or original use of the sculpture in question. Copyright and Scientific Documentation Some of the information and photographs have been generated with the assistance of artificial intelligence and are based on published sources in ethnography, archaeology, and art history. Original texts and photographs may be protected by copyright. All rights held by the respective copyright holders are reserved. Inv. No. MAZ33215 Informant: Amadou Dogo

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