Bamana
Mali
Northern Africa and the Sahel
Zoomorphic Figure (Boli)
INV-1540
Bamana
Mali
Northern Africa and the SahelMid-early 20th century
Zoomorphic Figure (Boli)
Bamana Mali Northern Africa and the Sahel →bamanaArts of AfricaNorthern Africa and the Sahelafrican Artwoodarts of Africa
Date
Mid-early 20th century
Medium
Wood, cloth, mud, and sacrificial material
Dimensions
48.3 × 31.8 × 50.8 cm (19 × 12 1/2 × 20 in.)
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Location
Chicago, IL
Credit
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Harold X. Weinstein
A boli is a type of Bamana power object, an object charged with spiritual energy that can affect human life. Like this one resembling a bush cow or hippopotamus, they are typically made of wood wrapped in layers of cotton cloth and covered with sacrificial materials—including animal blood, plant extracts, and dirt—imbued with energy by a specialist in healing and divining.
A boli is commissioned and cared for by an organization like Kono or Komo that oversees the various spiritual rites of a community in order to harness spiritual energy for protective or therapeutic purposes.
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