Spirit Figure ‘Bateba’

Lobi, Burkina Faso

Late 19th - Early 20th Century

Wood, Ritual Patina

12cm Tall

Provenance:

Serge Schoffel, Brussels

Wooden ‘Bateba’ are made upon the request of an individual, family or household, who would typically keep them in a shrine among other similar figures. These shrines would be cared for and receive various offerings, and in return the ancestral spirits would protect the inhabitants from harm.