Nigerian Standing Ceremonial Figure

Mouth open, eyes wide. He appears to have just heard the news.

This standing ceremonial figure is Dakakari, from Nigeria in West Africa, and is made of terra cotta. The Dakakari are known for setting clay figures and vessels on graves, as memorials honoring the dead. Pierced eyes and a round open mouth sit in a domed head. A raised, rope-like band crosses a stippled body, small hands rest against its sides, and long legs run down to a single broad, flared foot. Twenty-three and a half inches high.

Whatever it was, he is still taking it in.