Koma Terra Cotta Funerary Figure, Based

Two pellets for eyes. An open mouth, close beneath. That is all the face needs.

The Koma of northern Ghana made terra cotta figures and heads, found in burial mounds in the region and thought to have been placed in connection with the dead. This one dates between the 13th and 17th centuries. Five inches tall, it is a tapering cone-like form with a flat crown. The weathered clay is orange-tan, rough and granular, with traces of burial soil.

It is mounted on a slim black metal stand. Surprise, awe, a question. Possibly all three.