Figure with raised arms. Tellem/Dogon, Mali, 19th century or earlier.

Figure with raised arms. Tellem/Dogon, Mali, 19th century or earlier.
Carved wood.
Provenance:
- Christophe Tzara, Paris, France.
- 8 juillet 1969, Sotheby's - Untitled.
- Egon Guenther, Johannesburg, South Africa.
- 18 November 2000, Sotheby's - African art from the Egon Guenther family collection.
Measurements: 36.5 cm.

The raised arms are believed to represent imploring rain, asking forgiveness for mistakes made, or flying into caves.

Dogon art, in Mali, revolves around religious values, ideals and freedoms (Laude, 19). Dogon sculptures are not made for public display and are usually kept in homes, shrines or kept with the hogon (Laude, 20). The importance of secrecy is due to the symbolic significance that lies behind the pieces and the process through which they are made. Presumably the very history of the Dogon people as a group resistant to aggressive "international" religions is related to this refusal to exhibit their art, that is, their views of the world. Themes that can be found in Dogon sculpture are people with raised weapons, superimposed bearded people, knights, stools with caryatids, women with children, people covering their faces, women grinding millet, women carrying bowls in their hands, donkeys carrying loads, musicians, dogs, pancos or four-legged troughs, people bowing from the waist, mirror images, people in aprons, and standing people (Laude, 46-52). Contacts with other origins or cultures are evident in Dogon art. The influence of Tellem art is clear, which is clearly shown in its rectilinear designs (Laude, 24).