Bissau-Guinean Standing Male Figure, On custom base

Hands out, palms up. He seems to be waiting for something to be placed there.

This standing male figure is the work of the Bidjogo people of Guinea-Bissau in West Africa, made in the 20th century of carved wood with metal patches. Bidjogo standing figures are generally understood to house ancestor or protective spirits, kept at household and village shrines and consulted by their keepers. A flat, mask-like face sits on a ringed neck above long, square-shouldered arms. The torso is a dark red-brown, with a chevron line running down the chest, while the hands and lower legs are white. He stands on a custom base, forty-five inches tall.

He has the patience for it.