Galerie Peter Herrmann - Klassische Kunst aus Afrika

Dark, hard wood with a surface left in a natural condition.

These Mumuye ancestral figures are kept strictly secret and supervised by the village's rainmaker. To infuse them with power they are stored near the craniums of important ancestors and regularly receive sacrifices. As guardian figures, they also serve to protect the house. During visits from important personalities, they are brought out by the rainmaker to accentuate this importance. The rainmaker often acts as a judge, and the figures help to determine the guilty party in a case and to punish it. In the case of disease, they are integrated into the healing rituals.

Mumuye, Nigeria
Wood
94 cm