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Seated Male Figure

Middle Niger civilization

12th–14th century

Not on view

Middle Niger artists added and inscribed details on their fluidly modeled bodily forms. The formal unity of these solitary, introspective seated male figures suggests the output of a workshop. Each has the same stylized arrangement of limbs, stone-bead necklaces, and metal bracelets. The interpretive potential of such ancient creations has been severely compromised by their lack of archaeological provenance. To ignore their existence is, however, to deny one of the most significant moments in Sahelian creative expression.

Seated Male Figure, Terracotta, Middle Niger civilization — This image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

Seated Male Figure, Terracotta, Middle Niger civilization

Seated Male Figure, Terracotta, Middle Niger civilization

Seated Male Figure, Terracotta, Middle Niger civilization

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.

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

Title: Seated Male Figure

Date: 12th–14th century

Geography: Ségou Region, Mali

Culture: Middle Niger civilization

Medium: Terracotta

Dimensions: H. 20 1/2 × W. 13 × D. 11 in. (52.1 × 33 × 27.9 cm) (without stand)

Classification: Ceramics-Sculpture

Credit Line: 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.