Two old African Lobi Bateba statues - Burkina Faso.

Hand carved from a single piece of wood and collected in the 1950s 

Size: 22 cm high.

This two Lobi sculpture are dated first half of the 20th century and comes with a certificate of authenticity.

Two Lobi Bateba statues, collected in the Gaoua region, Burkina Faso.

"The Lobi people live in a vast geographical area stretching from Burkina Faso, to Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana. Villages are spread over large areas and consist of several complexes." "The Lobi community is not organized on the basis of kinship or political ties and lacks any centralized political authority in the form of a chief king or council of village elders. Instead, the members of the community are united by a common adherence to the cult of a nature spirit called "thil" (plural thila) and the rules that govern proper social behavior in the community are those dictated by the spirit through the diviner (thildar). The thila are invisible spirits of nature with certain supernatural powers and forces that they can use for either malevolent or benevolent purposes. Each village has a particular spirit (dithil) who is responsible for the entire village. Social behavior is regulated by this thila, whose will is communicated to common people by priests and diviners." "Wooden or clay sculptures, called bateba, act as an intermediary between a particular thil and the Lobi community. Lobi bateba figures have a great deal of style and are made for a wide range of purposes. In Lobi communities, anyone can learn to carve, it is not limited to those with specialized training. Lobi bateba figures are believed to be able to act on behalf of their owner, they are considered a living being and have the ability to act against forces that can harm the owner or bring good things to the owner, depending on the intended purpose".
Lit: Daniela Bognolo: Lobi. Visions of Africa, 2007 Milan; Floros & Sigrid Katsouros/Stephan und Petra Herkenhoff: Anonyme Schnitzer der Lobi, Hannover 2006; Piet Meyer: Kunst und Religion der Lobi, Zürich 1981; Galerie Flak: Magie Lobi, Paris 2003; Floros Katsouros: Lobi - Figuren, chefs d'oeuvre und Kultobjekte, Hannover 2013; Kat. Ausst.: Lobi. Westafrikanische Skulpturen aus der Sammlung Greschik, anlässlich der Ausstellung „Die Entdeckung des Individuums“, Lutherstadt Wittenberg 2016, Berlin 2016