Tribal Art

French African tribal art collection.
Small Dogon altar figure, with a flat face extending to the center of the bust. A posture of devotion for this figure of ancestor coated with a black crusty patina resulting from periodic ritual unctions.
Carved for the most part on commission by a family, Dogon statues can also be the object of worship by the entire community when they commemorate, for example, the founding of the village. However, little is known about their functions. Alongside Islam, Dogon religious rites are organized around four main cults: the Lebe, relating to fertility, under the spiritual authority of the Hogon; the Wagem, ancestor worship under the authority of the patriarch; the Binou invoking the spirit world and led by the Binou priest; and the mask society concerning funerals. The Nommo, a mythical figure venerated by the clan and a recurring sculpted figure, is said to have founded the eight Dogon lineages and to be at the origin of weaving, the art of forging, and agriculture.