Mossi Biiga or Doll / Fertility Figure

A crested head swept back like a rooster, over a boxy body cut with diamonds.

This biiga, a doll or fertility figure is Mossi, from Burkina Faso, West Africa, and dates to the 20th century. It is carved wood. The figure is typically a flat or columnar wooden form with a stylized head, carved with a smooth surface and sometimes a distinctive hairstyle. A carved figure with a ridged, comb-like crest on the head and a long neck bending forward. The square torso is incised with diamond and line patterns, and a block shape marks the shoulders. The surface is light and worn. It is 1.6 inches wide, 2.5 deep and 7.75 high.

A jaunty crest on a body that means business.