Ibibo Male Fetish Figure

Southeast Nigeria, bordering Cameroon and Benin to the east and west respectively and influenced but the great traditions of sculpture of both cultures. 17 1/2" height of characteristic blocky form with the face abstracted yet still sensitively rendered. The hands grip a finger piano to invoke the spirits. Ibibo worshipped two gods, god of heaven and god of Earth. This figure would have been a conduit through which the gods could communicate. Puchased Christie's, London in the 1980s.