Female Figure (Bateba) | Yale University Art Gallery

early 20th century

Bateba figures are found primarily in the household shrines of Lobi villagers. They are thought to serve as intermediaries between the human and spirit realms. This example is somewhat unusual: the woman's long, muscular legs, the forward thrust of her shoulders, and the slight angle at which she stands make for a more dynamic treatment of the human figure than is typically found in Lobi statuary.

Medium: Wood, twine, and beads
Dimensions: 21 1/2 × 4 1/2 × 5 in. (54.61 × 11.43 × 12.7 cm)
Credit Line: Gift of Mr. and Mrs. James M. Osborn for the Linton Collection of African Art
Accession Number: 1959.72.2
Geography: Burkina Faso
Culture: Lobi
Period: 20th century
Classification: Sculpture
Disclaimer: Note: This electronic record was created from historic documentation that does not necessarily reflect the Yale University Art Gallery’s complete or current knowledge about the object. Review and updating of records is ongoing.

Provenance

Dr. Ralph Linton (1893–1953), by 1953 [see note 1]; by descent to his wife, Adelin Hohlfield Linton (1899–1977); sold to Marie-Louise Montgomery Osborn (1905–1968) and James Marshall Osborn (1906–1976), 1954; given to the Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, Conn.,1959

Note 1: Ralph Linton was the Sterling Professor of Anthropology at Yale from 1946 until his death in 1953.

Bibliography

Ralph Linton, The Linton Collection of African Sculpture: An Exhibition, March 13 through April 18, 1954, exh. cat. (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Art Gallery, 1954), no. 13

Object copyright

Additional information

Object/Work type

figures (representations)

Subject

women

Technical metadata and APIs

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