Male Figure (Waka Sran)
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Object Label
This figure most likely embodies a "spirit spouse"—the husband or wife every person is said to have had before birth. Through dreams, misfortune, and other signs, a person may learn that his or her spirit spouse feels neglected or jealous. One way to appease the spirit is to commission a carved figure of it and carefully nurture it with food offering and perhaps bathe and rub it with oil.
Caption
Baule. Male Figure (Waka Sran), early 20th century. Wood, 11 x 3 9/16 x 4 1/4 in. (27.9 x 9 x 10.8 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Frank L. Babbott Fund, 61.3. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 61.3_front_PS2.jpg)
Gallery
Not on view
Collection
Gallery
Not on view
Collection
Culture
Title
Male Figure (Waka Sran)
Date
early 20th century
Geography
Possible place made: Lacs or N’zi Comoé Region, Côte d'Ivoire, Possible place made: Vallée du Bandama Region, Côte d'Ivoire
Medium
Wood
Classification
Dimensions
11 x 3 9/16 x 4 1/4 in. (27.9 x 9 x 10.8 cm)
Credit Line
Frank L. Babbott Fund
Accession Number
61.3
Rights
Creative Commons-BY
You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this three-dimensional work in accordance with a Creative Commons license. Fair use, as understood under the United States Copyright Act, may also apply. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply). For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.
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