Bobo Standing Female Figure with Beak

Long head, thin arms, flat feet, and absolutely no small talk.

Bobo makers of Burkina Faso, West Africa, cast this standing female figure in bronze in the 20th century. Small cast figures across the region are often tied to protection, community or ritual use, though meanings vary. Here the head stretches upward into a beak-like crest marked with ridged lines, and the arms extend outward from a narrow torso. Heavy rounded feet carry the whole figure. The surface is gray-green, with pale wear on the high points.

About five inches tall. It stands apart from everything else on the shelf, and seems to prefer that.