BOOKS
Bruno Claessens and Jean-Louis Danis.
Baule monkeys.
Brussels, Mercaterfonds Africarium, 2016.
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Bound, hardcover with original dustjacket 191pp., 23.5x31cm., richly illustr. in col., in very good condition (dustjacket with light traces of use). ISBN: 9789462301344.
The Baule people of the Ivory Coast are renowned for their refined sculptural work of masks and figures. This book is the first to focus exclusively on an antithetic aspect of Baule culture: rough zoomorphic sculptures representing monkeys. These awe-inspiring bowl-bearing figures evoke invisible powers and serve their communities through the mediation of diviners. Investigating the creation, forms, and usage of the sculptures, the authors sheds light on the cultural and ritual contexts in which they operated. Beautifully illustrated with over 55 full-page color images of works in public and private collections, this important publication includes also many unpublished field photographs.