Mossi Biiga or Doll / Fertility Figure

A spade for a head, and the shoulders to match.

Mossi carvers of Burkina Faso, West Africa, made this biiga, or fertility doll, in wood in the 20th century. Biiga are commonly associated with fertility and are often carried and looked after like children. The broad, spade-shaped head sits on a long neck above a notched arm and a tall, slim body with a few scratched marks. It rests on a cylindrical foot. The wood is dark and aged, with a smooth, handled look.

About 16 inches tall. Sleek, upright and faintly heraldic.