Bura Terracotta Figure

This austere and powerful staff-like anthropomorphic terracotta sculpture was made by one of the most inscrutable groups in pre- colonial Africa–the Bura. The form is highly unusual for terracotta pieces, with a long, tapering “body” resembling a spike; this form is often used in stone carved pieces, possibly as a sceptre. Terracotta heads are usually flat-based or parts of larger sculptural forms; this example most closely resembles a peg. The head is approximately round, but with a flattened face, a domed forehead and low-slung fan-like ears. The eyes and mouth are in the coffee-bean format, while the nose is comparatively short, an unusual finding. The forehead is decorated with a pair of small eminences, one at either side of a large three-strand crest that runs over the apex of the head and down towards the nape of the neck. Each cheek is decorated with a square patch of incised/raised hatching that probably represents keloid scarifications. The general shape of the object is phallic, the facial and other details added secondarily. As the rear of the figure is so plain, the piece may have been designed to be seen from the front, perhaps as a devotional object or idol. The shape of the “body” suggests that it might have been stuck into the ground leaving only the upper aspect exposed.

The Bura are a true paradox. Almost nothing is known of this shadowy Nigerian/Malian group. They appear to have originated in the first half of the first millennium AD, although the only archaeologically-excavated site (Nyamey) dates between the 14th and 16th centuries. They are contemporary with – and probably related to – the Djenne Kingdom, the Koma, the Teneku and a satellite culture known as the Inland Niger Delta. Insofar as can be ascertained, the Bura share certain characteristics with these groups; for our purposes, these include extensive ceramic and stone sculptural traditions. The Bura appear to have been sedentary agriculturists who buried their dead in tall, conical urns, often surmounted by small figures. Their utilitarian vessels are usually plain, while other “containers” – the function of which is not understood – are often decorated with incised and stamped patterns. Their best-known art form is radically reductivist anthropomorphic stone statues, with heads rendered as squares, triangles and ovals, with the body suggested by a columnar, monolithic shape beneath. Phallic objects are also known; some phallomorphic objects may have been staffs, perhaps regalia pertaining to leaders of Bura groups. Ceramic heads are usually more complex than their stone counterparts, with incised decoration and variable treatment of facial proportions and features. There are a few very rare equestrian figures: these bear some resemblance to Djenne pieces. Almost no intact human (or equestrian) figures are known.

The role of these figures is almost totally obscure. Equestrian figures probably represent high status individuals, and the very few full- body representations of humans may be portraits or ancestor figures. Intuitively – as with so many other groups both inside and beyond Africa – figures with exaggerated sexual characteristics would tend to be associated with fertility and fecundity, as would any artifact modeled in the shape of pudenda (although the sceptre-like qualities of some such pieces should be noted – see above). The distribution of decoration on some ceramic pieces (notably phalluses) may suggest that they were designed to be viewed from one angle only – perhaps as adorational pieces. Many pieces are believed to have been found in burials, perhaps implying an importance that would have been linked to social standing and status.