Attie figure
Artist Unidentified
late 19th–20th century
Object PlaceCôte d'Ivoire
Medium/TechniqueWood
Dimensions41.91 cm (16 1/2 in.)
Credit LineGift of William E. and Bertha L. Teel
Accession number1992.402
On View
Not on viewClassificationsSculpture
Collections
The Attie are a coastal Akan group in close contact with their Baule neighbors. This weathered figure was probably commissioned by a priest to represent an attendant of a deity and was housed in a shrine along with other sculptural works. While most African figures are carved from a single block of wood, this one has separate arms, pegged to the shoulders, which might be manipulated during rites. The outstretched hands suggest a supplicant's gesture.
ProvenanceLucien van de Velde (dealer), Antwerp [see note]. May 20, 1983, sold by Alain de Monbrison (dealer), Paris, to William E. and Bertha L. Teel, Marblehead, MA; 1992, partial gift of William and Bertha Teel to the MFA; 2014, acquired fully with the bequest of William Teel to the MFA. (Accession Dates: June 30, 1992 and February 26, 2014)NOTE: Yale Van Rijn Archive of African Art, no. 0005155.
