Female Kole Figure - very hard and dense wood - Bété. - Ivory Coast

Fantastic Female Kole Figure – Bete – Ivory Coast In good state with true vintage appearance all over. On stand. It dates to the 1920s. Provenance: Ex-collection of Marcial Bronsin, Brussels. Bought from his gallery L’Impasse St Jacques by H. Westerdijk around 1975. Just like the Guro and the Dan, the Bété have produced, besides lots of masks, only a small number of figures, mostly portraying women. Collectively known as Kolé, these figures are said to have been commemorative in character. Whether they represent ancestors and if so, for what purpose, is rather vaguely described in the literature. These pieces are typified by long, strong and robust bodies with free arms, the hands open and stand on shortened, muscular legs. Characteristic of these sculptures is that the heads are relatively small in comparison to the total volume of the pieces. The hairdo consists of parallel braids combed backwards. The facial features reminds one of the Guro and Dan figures of the same size. The surface has a sweet patina from many offerings. Literature: Warren M Robbins and Nancy Ingram Nooter: African Art in American Collections, Washington – London, 1989, pp. 170-171. Dimensions: 48 x 15 x 11 cm. People / Region: The Bété live in S. W. Ivory Coast on the Sassandra River. Material: very hard and dense wood. Weight: 2. 530 kg. incl. stand Sold with handwritten declaration of authenticity by Dr. P. Westerdijk, museum ethnologist and cultural anthropologist specialized, for over 50 years now, in the study of the material cultures in African nations that live south of the Sahara.