DOGON, Mali - Lot 59

DOGON, Mali Very ancient seat featuring feet decorated with founding nommos, their arms symbolically pointing to the sky and to the ground. The circular seat is encircled by undulating sawtooth decoration. Dogon seats of power were intended for chiefs invested with spiritual and social authority. The figures of nommos, mythical primordial beings, symbolize this dual mediation: one, with arms raised, embodies a relationship with the heavens and the cosmic order; the other, with arms lowered, evokes the earth, the appropriation of resources and the blessing of the soil. Despite its fragmentary nature, this seat stands out for the age of its craftsmanship and the expressive power of its sculpture. Wood, localized erosion. Height 37 cm Width: 36 cm One foot missing