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The word Senufo essentially means, “speaker of
the [Senufo] language” and has been employed
to describe the Senufo tribe since the French first
infiltrated their lands. The term derives from the
Malinke word “fo,” meaning “to speak” and the
Senufo word “syeen,” meaning “person” and
“speech.” Originally, the Senufo people were
probably part of the cultural conglomerate that
occupied lands over a millennium ago now
associated with the Inland Niger River Delta.
Today, they number around one and a half
million people spread out over a region
encompassing the modern countries of Mali and
the Ivory Coast, as well as segments in Burkina
Faso. Traditional Senufo culture is based upon
subsistence agriculture supplemented by hunting
and inextricably linked with western Sudanic
blacksmith technology. The works of Senufo art
were generally carved either by blacksmiths,
“fononbele,” or by wood-carvers, known as
“kulebele.” Senufo art celebrates submission to
the gods as well as properly instituted
authorities, specifically as these relate to family
and age-grade hierarchy.
Among the most famous statues in the corpus of
African art are a series traditionally known as
“ndebele,” a plural word that has been corrupted
by Western literature into the singular “deble.”
Sometimes, they are also referred to as
“pombibele,” meaning “those who give birth.”
Initially, these sculptures were carved as pairs
representing the primordial couple. However, if
one of the pair was worn or damaged, a
replacement may be commissioned, and thusly
the pairs were not always by the hands of the
same sculptor. These large sculptures would
have been used during the rituals that took place
before and after the burial of an elder Poro
member. The Poro is a male "secret" society,
headed by the village elders, where the sacred
knowledge of manhood is transferred to young
initiates. .Such young initiates would be
responsible for carrying these sculptures to the
residence of the deceased. Ofterntimes, one
“deble” would be placed alongside the body of
the deceased during public ceremonies that
followed. Then, as the corpse was transferred to
the burial plot, the works would be hauled in the
procession, swung and pounded on the ground
in rhythm to the solemn music of the Poro
orchestra. When the interment is finished and
dirt is piled over the grave, an initiate may leap
atop the grave with a “deble” and beat the soil
seven times in a final decisive gesture meant to
ensure the spirit of the deceased safe passage
into the village of the dead.
This sculpture is the representation of an
idealized woman. Her elongated, sinuous forms
are based upon the ideals of femininity. Her face
appears like a typical Senufo mask with its semi-
circular eyes, arched brows, pointed chin, and
protruding mouth with exposed teeth. Ritualistic
scarifications are evident on her temples and her
breasts. The ritually inflicted scars were
considered marks of beauty and surely enhance
this woman’s stature, as do the bracelets
wrapped around her arms and wrists as well as
her elaborately groomed coiffure sculpted in the
form of a stylized crest. The woman’s physical
stature reveals her inherent fertility, most
noticeable in her large conical breasts,
protruding navel, and large, abstracted genitalia.
The forms and composition of the figure are just
the beginning of its beauty. For in this work,
form and function are intertwined and
inseparable. Funeral ceremonies, while generally
somber occasions, can also become celebrations
of life, as is implied by this sculpture. We can
hear the beat of its pounding, we can picture the
dancers, we can sense something greater than
our eyes behold.
- (PF.2960)
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