Africa, Central Africa, Republic of the Congo, Beembe-style maker / late 1800s-early 1900s
Male Figure
The Cleveland Museum of Art catalogs Male Figure as sculpture (Africa, Central Africa, Republic of the Congo, Beembe-style maker · late 1800s-early 1900s).
This figure is considered “monumental” as most other types of Beembe figures measure about 15 centimeters tall.
A CLOSER LOOK
The museum identifies this sculpture as Wood, ceramic or Formica, copper alloy, and iron alloy.
The museum's collection notes: This sculpture played a role in ancestral worship among the Beembe people. Ancestors are held in high regard among the Beembe, and this figure is thought to represent an idealized form of a deceased individual within the ethnic group. The object is one of only two seated male Beembe figures of this size in Western institutions.
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The Cleveland Museum of ArtMale FigureOriginal explanation based on the sources above. Images carry their own reuse terms.