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DOGON Hermaphrodite Ancestor Figure
A slender upright wooden figure (1st half 20th C., 34 cm) from the Dogon of Mali — a distinct helmet-like coiffure, pointed lip plug or beard, female breasts, and male genitalia, wood carrying the dry oxidized patina typical of the Bandiagara Escarpment with deep environmental cracking.
1. Dualism and the Nommo
The presence of both male and female sexual characteristics directly invokes Dogon creation myth.
- Primordial Wholeness: The original beings created by the supreme god Amma — the Nommo — were hermaphroditic, possessing the perfect undivided totality of both sexes.
- Cosmic Balance: This figure embodies the primordial state of wholeness, representing universal balance rather than any individual human.
2. Shrines of Creation
Such figures are placed on altars dedicated to Amma or the ancestors in specific contexts.
- Fertility and Reconciliation: Hermaphrodite figures come out in rituals involving fertility questions and the resolution of severe community disputes.
- Restoring Harmony: By invoking the perfect dualism of the Nommo, the community seeks to repair fractures in the human world through the foundational forces of creation.
3. Bandiagara Weathering
The surface condition is a textbook example of long-term Dogon cliff-shrine storage.
- Matte Dusty Oxidation: Decades in the dry protected environment of a Bandiagara shrine produce a characteristic powdery oxidation.
- Longitudinal Checking: Significant cracks running with the grain are a natural aging process of local hardwoods in the Malian climate.
Summary
A potent symbol of primordial perfection, this Dogon hermaphrodite figure perfectly illustrates the philosophical depth of Malian cosmology. Its striking dual gender traits and authentic Sahelian weathering make it a vital piece of ethnographic history.
