Baule Blolo or Spirit Spouse

Tan chest, aqua skirt, and a base that is still half tree.

Baule artists of the Ivory Coast, West Africa, carved this blolo in wood in the 20th century. Figures like it are commonly associated with a partner in the other world and are tended with offerings. Dark limbs and a dark, ridged coiffure frame a lighter torso, which is warmed with a natural tan finish. A pale aqua skirt hangs from the waist. The thick, uneven base still shows the cut of the log.

About twelve inches tall. The wood has plenty to say.