Baule Leather Drum, Ivory Coast, Based

A drum this tall does not wait to be noticed.

This drum is Baule, from the Ivory Coast in West Africa, 20th century, in carved and painted wood with a hide top, shown on a base. Baule drums have been played for dance, ceremony and public occasions, with carving that can signal their importance. Bands of geometry climb the long shaft in faded red and blue-green, broken by twisted rope-like rings. A row of small faces looks out near the top, below the pegs that hold the hide. It is 76.5 inches high and 12 in diameter.

Quiet now, though nobody would call it shy.