Female Figure
Unknown Artist
late 1800s–early 1900s
Medium
Wood, paint, glass beads, and natural fiber
Dimensions
54.1 × 7.8 × 7.5 cm
Classification
Sculpture
Department
African Art
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Gift of Katherine C. White
Accession Number
1972.343
About this artwork
An artistic melting pot, the Bondoukou region in northeastern Côte d’Ivoire near the border with Ghana is inhabited by several ethnic groups whose cultures and artistic styles often intermingle. This figure’s rounded shapes and delicate surface decoration––which seem to imitate body scarifications––closely resemble the style of Baule carvings. The figure’s meaning and function remain a mystery.