Cameroonian Wood Stool

Notice the sides first. Each is pierced with a crisscrossing lattice of carved bars, and nobody carved that by accident.

In the Cameroon Grassfields, stools came in many forms, from simple household seats to elaborate ones reserved for titled men, and openwork bases were a favored way to show a carver’s skill. This 20th-century example has a broad, softly dished seat with rounded corners, set on a block-like base. The solid framing posts are covered in a fine incised diamond pattern.

The wood is warm, dry brown, worn at the edges of the seat. Eleven and a half inches high. Compact, sturdy, and happy to be sat on.