Tribal Art

Subject of indeterminate sex, corpulent and wearing a crown of cowries, whose posture of the feet towards the back forms the strange specificity. The bust is swaddled in fabric underlined by a belt made up of canvas sausages embellished with shells. The ends of a double raffia cord enclosing the neck extend over the bust and back. Rough gray patien. Grainy residual deposits.
The multitude of fon gods (the vodun) associated with the voodoo cult or vodun, a religious cult whose name comes from a variant of the Yoruba word meaning "god", is represented by fetishes of all shapes and types. Their sanctuaries are found in Togo, Dahomey, and western Nigeria. Statuettes embodying the legba, protectors of the home, are often added to them. The faithful administer daily offerings and libations to them, supposed to activate their power. The Fon currently live in part of the Republic of Benin which formed the Kingdom of Dahomey. The Ewe, often confused with the Minas, are Togo's largest ethnic group. They are also found as minorities in Ghana, Benin, Côte d'Ivoire and Nigeria. Although we have little historical information about the Ewe, it seems that their establishment in their current location results from invasions and conflicts that broke out during the 17th century.