Koma Terra Cotta Funerary Figure

Not every Koma head is a head you can stand up. This one lies back and looks at the ceiling.

Unusual in shape, it was made in northern Ghana between the 13th and 17th centuries. Koma figures are generally associated with funerary mounds, though their exact role in ritual remains uncertain. This is a low rounded dome, three inches tall, face turned upward. Small applied pellets suggest eyes and a nose above a large open mouth with a thick, ringed lip, and a smaller cup-like opening below holds dark residue. Orange-red clay, weathered, slightly rough.

It sits well on a desk. Its mouth is open, and not for conversation.