Vere, Duru, bronze alloy statuette, Cameoun.This... Lot 26

Vere, Duru, bronze alloy statuette, Cameoun.This rare African statuette features an androgynous being with webbed hands and feet, and a face with prominent features, characterized by bulbous eyelids, pointed, horizontal ears and a sagittal crest. The body is adorned with linear, chequered scarification marks rising from the neck. The neck is underlined by a torque, while a belt marks the hips and anklets the legs. 23 x 8 cm The Vere , Verre , Were, Duru-Verre, or Dii, live in northeastern Nigeria, in the state of Adamawa (formerly Gongola), and in northern Cameroon. This very small population lives in circular huts grouped together in fortified villages. Vere statuettes, the function of which remains poorly understood, are rare, and show similarities with the works produced by the Mumuye, their close neighbors living between Nigeria and Cameroon.