Equestrian Figure
Dogon
16th/19th century
Medium
Wood and sacrificial material
Dimensions
35.2 × 6.4 × 12.1 cm (13 7/8 × 2 1/2 × 4 3/4 in.)
Classification
sculpture
Department
Arts of Africa
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
87106
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
In the 15th century, Dogon people fleeing hostilities in their homeland—caused by slave raiders’ incursions and the expansion of Islam—migrated to the rocky Bandiagara Escarpment in present-day Mali, where they encountered the Tellem people. While the Dogon eventually expelled the Tellem from the region, the two peoples appear to have influenced each other’s sculptural styles. This horse-and-rider features the pared-down style and encrusted surface associated with sculptures made by the Tellem.