Koma Ceramic Funerary Figure, Based

A tall column of a head, with eyes like coffee beans and a beard combed into straight lines.

This funerary figure, based, is Koma, from Northern Ghana, West Africa, and dates to the 13th to 17th century. It is terra cotta. Many Koma terracottas survive as heads or partial figures, and the hollow, cylindrical head seen here is typical of the style. The open-topped column carries a twisted band across the brow, two oval eyes with a slit down each, and a thick rolled collar around the mouth. Below, fine vertical grooves suggest a beard before the form tapers to a rounded point. The surface is a dusty reddish brown. It is 8.25 inches high and 2.5 wide.

Well groomed, and patient about it.