Figure
- Gallery: Room 25
- Made in: Mali
- Date: 1900 (or earlier)
- Object type: figure
- Materials: wood
- Museum number: Af1956,27.1
- Museum: The British Museum
- Collection record: British Museum website
- Image © The Trustees of the British Museum, shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 licence.
Listen to the free audio guide
About this object
Before you is a wooden figure representing a female ancestor, or Nommo, from the Dogon people of Mali. The figure has a cylindrical body, raised arms joined at the head, and stands on a disc. Over time, the surface has become encrusted with layers of sacrificial material, possibly millet gruel.
Carved from a single block of wood, this figure was likely used in rituals and linked to spiritual practices. The arms reaching upward suggest a connection between earth and sky, and may relate to rituals or prayers. Its thick, crusty surface reflects repeated use over many years.
This piece was created before 1900 and comes from an older Dogon carving tradition. It was collected in 1935 and later donated by Mrs Margaret Plass as part of the Webster Plass collection. Today, it is recognized as one of the finest examples of Dogon art in museum collections.
See it in person
Figure is on display in Room 25 at the British Museum on Great Russell Street, Bloomsbury, London — free to enter. Choose British Museum on audioguide.london and take a photo of it to hear this free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
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