Fali Doll, Cameroon

Knotted fiber, tipped with tiny glass beads. A doll that was dressed in sound.

Fali dolls of northern Cameroon are traditionally associated with girls and young women, carried and cared for as a child and linked to hopes for marriage and motherhood. This one, from the 20th century, stands just over ten inches tall, a slender columnar form tightly wrapped in knotted rows of fiber or leather cord, worn to warm reddish brown. Short stiff strands form a crown and the arms, and a fringe falls at the bottom, many tipped with tiny white and black glass beads.

A few red beads are set into the body. It is shown on a metal stand. Handle it with the care it was always given.