Ancestor figure – Wood – Yoruba – Nigeria

Stylistic Yoruba ancestor figure from Nigeria. The large figure is surrounded by 4 smaller figures standing in the 4 wind directions.  Eshu is a deity – orisha – in the Yoruba pantheon which is very widely celebrated.
Eshu is the messenger ; he is the mischievous, the cunning, the shrewd.

Ambiguous character, he is represented through feminine and masculine figures, in a good or bad situation ; it exists to provoke men and to allow questioning in order to seek the truth.
Good condition with a beautiful aged patina with traces of tribal use.

Provenance: Manfred Schäfer, former gallery owner from Ulm (Germany).