Bamana Iron Equestrian Figure, Mali

Arthur Cohen & Elaine Lustig Cohen, New York, acquired in the 1960s

The function of objects such as this iron equestrian figure from the top of a pike was mainly political. 'The pikes were emblems of power and were planted in the entrances of family courtyards, from where they were taken and stuck in the ground at the edge of the dance area during village festivals.' (Jean-Paul Colleyn, Bamana, 2009, p. 129).