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Seated female figure

17th–18th century

Not on view

The heroic male warriors and nurturing mothers depicted on ikoro may have been intended to reflect and celebrate the distinct but complementary powers attributed to male and female lines of descent. According to the Mbembe system of double unilineal kinship, rights to land and houses were inherited through the father, while other movable property and jural rights over individuals came through the mother.

This sculpture closely resembles the Beyeler and Louvre figures, and the same sculptor may have carved all three works. Its distinctive features are an especially elongated robust torso, powerful neck, and imposing head.

Seated female figure, Wood, Mbembe peoples — This image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

Seated female figure, Wood, Mbembe peoples

Seated female figure, Wood, Mbembe peoples

This artwork is meant to be viewed from right to left. Scroll left to view more.

This image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

This image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

Title: Seated female figure

Date: 17th–18th century

Geography: Nigeria, Ewayon River region, Cross River Province

Culture: Mbembe peoples

Medium: Wood

Dimensions: H. x W. x D.: 32 5/16 × 13 × 17 in. (82 × 33 × 43.2 cm)

Classification: Wood-Sculpture

Credit Line: A private collection

The Met

The Michael C. Rockefeller Wing at The Met

The Met's collection of art of the peoples of sub-Saharan Africa, the Pacific Islands, and North, Central, and South America comprises more than eleven thousand works of art of varied materials and types, representing diverse cultural traditions from as early as 3000 B.C.E. to the present.