Koma Terra Cotta Funerary Figure

A small round-topped head wears a serrated brow band and an expression of permanent surprise.

This Koma terra cotta funerary figure is Koma, from Northern Ghana, West Africa. Funerary figures in many African traditions are generally linked with remembrance of the dead and with family ties to ancestors, though meanings differ widely from one community to the next. A rounded head with a ribbed band across the brow and two bulging, ringed eyes. The mouth is a pinched pair of lips with a pierced hole below, and the warm orange surface is rough, with a crumbled base. It is 1.25 inches wide, 1.5 deep and 2.25 high.

Whoever pressed those eyes on knew exactly how startled to make it.