"Mossi posts of this type are usually made in pairs, male and female, to be erected at each side of the entrance to a chief's compound residence...The post shows both male and female characteristics, it has both a beard and a woman's crest, both breasts and penis. [Moreover, there are three vertical lines on the side of the face and a diagonal scar on the right cheek that Mossi men are given before reaching puberty.] This is very much in accord with other Mossi chief's figures that illustrate the sexually ambiguous character of the ideal chief, who represents both the male and female elements of his community in one. This object was carved by an African carver for a traditional context, commissioned by a Mossi chief and used in a town or village. It is an unusually dramatic and expressive carving that nonetheless fits in with the corpus of known sculpture by the Mossi." (Christopher D. Roy, letter 2/25/1990, in Bonhams 2007)
"The posts are changed each year after the annual sacrifices following the harvest, when the chief's ancestors are thanked for providing for the well-being of the community during the year. The old posts are buried like human corpses. The figures serve two purposes: they are symbols to all visitors that the house belongs to an important chief, and they guard the entrance of the compound to prevent dangerous spirits from entering and harming the family." (Roy 1982: 57)

Provenance:
Bonhams, New York 2007
The Gelbard Collection of African Art
Roland de Montegue
Michael Olliver

Publishing History:
Arthur Bourgeois and Scott Rodolitz. Remnants of Ritual: Selections from the Gelbard Collection of African Art. New York, Ethnos 2003: 5 (figs. 12a,b).
Bonhams. The Gelbard Collection of African Art. New York November 13, 2007: 25-27, lot 2511.

Exhibition History:
Tall Grass Art Association, Illinois 2005
Belger Art Foundation, University of Missouri-Kansas City 2004
Krannert Art Museum, Illinois 2003
Governors State University, Illinois 2003