Koma Ceramic Funerary Figure

A thick-lipped face on a sturdy column, with a beaded belt to keep things orderly.

This funerary figure is Koma, from Northern Ghana, West Africa, and dates to between the 13th and 17th centuries. It is terra cotta. Female attributes appear on a good number of Koma figures, and scholars generally read them within the broader funerary context rather than as portraits of individuals. The head has a ridged hairline, large almond eyes, a broad nose and full, pressed lips. Small breasts and a round boss sit on the chest of the cylindrical body, and a beaded band circles it near the base. The clay is a dusky gray-brown. It is 6 inches high, 3 deep and 2.25 wide.

Upright, unhurried and well put together.