Tribal Wood Sculpture of 3 Men on a Cow

Mali (attr)

Wonderful, tribal wooden sculpture of three seated figures on the back of an unsaddled cow, or possibly another animal (hippo, perhaps). The animal has short, stumpy legs and rounded torso and head. The riders' heads are all crowned with a tuft of hair. The piece can possibly be attributed to the Tellem or Dogon peoples, from central Mali, Africa. Date unknown. Piece has some cracks and signs of previous repairs.