This is a very old and field used shrine sculpture from the Dagari (Dagarti) ethnic group of Ghana / Burkina Faso, West Africa. a classic ‘phallic’ ancestor figures constructed as a reversed ‘Y’, The Dagari are relatives of the Lobi, who live in the south-west of Burkina Faso and in the north-west of Ghana. Their significant ancestor sculptures, known as ‘kpin sebla’, were set up in hidden places or in shrines, and were only allowed to be seen by ‘initiates’. These figures received sacrificial offerings of millet, millet gruel or the blood of sacrificed animals. Carved in hard, reddish-brown wood. This Dagari ancestor displays a heavy, encrusted sacrificial patina suggesting years of ritual use. The sculpture measures 21.5 x 7.5 inches on custom metal display stand. Ex Private Pennsylvania collection.

Fair, heavily eroded, what remains is stable.