Returned to lender The Met accepts temporary loans of art both for short-term exhibitions and for long-term display in its galleries.
Seated Figure
Not on view
In the absence of contextual documentation, scholars have suggested general theories about the intended role and significance of outstanding examples of Dogon sculpture such as this seated figure. In a Dogon myth documented by Marcel Griaule, a sculpture was carved at the time of the first human death to support the soul of the departed and thereby release the vital force of nyama. As death spread across the land, each lineage adopted the practice of placing sculptural offerings on dedicated altars. Anthropologist Walther van Beek, however, has disputed this explanation, emphasizing that the subjects of Dogon sculpture are petitioners addressing the immediate concerns of the living.
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