Dogon Standing Female Figure

She leans, very slightly. Just enough to seem alive.

This slender standing woman was cast in bronze by the Dogon of Mali in the 20th century. Small figures like her were kept on altars or carried as protective objects, and women were frequently depicted. She stands on long straight legs with large flat feet, hands raised to the chest. A stack of rings lengthens the neck, and a crested coiffure sits above a narrow face with a pointed chin. A beaded girdle circles the hips, and fine incised lines trace the torso. The dark surface is lighter where it has been handled.

Seven inches tall.