Bambara Bronze Figure, Mali

Sitting cross-legged, long arms resting on his knees. In Mali, a bronze that can wait.

Bambara, or Bamana, smiths cast such figures by the lost-wax process, to be kept as personal objects or set on altars. This one, 20th century, wears a tall, stacked headdress of ringed tiers above an elongated head and narrow face. A V-shaped collar and the chest carry ring-and-dot motifs. An armband circles one upper arm and a small object projects at one shoulder. Deep, dark patina, lighter in the recesses. Six inches tall.

Poised. Upright. A man with nowhere to be.