This figure shows a seated female Baule statue, placed on an Ashanti-type stool, holding a vessel in both hands. This combination is highly significant: it merges Baule idealised figural representation with Akan-derived prestige symbolism. In the Yamoussoukro region, where Baule courtly traditions and inland workshop schools overlap, such sculptures tend to emphasise composure, symmetry, and controlled bodily presence rather than narrative action. The seated posture on a stool is not incidental. It indicates status, stability, and mediation between visible and invisible realms. In Baule thought, stools function as condensed markers of authority and spiritual legitimacy, and their Akan formal derivation reinforces historical cultural continuity across the forest belt. The figure’s upright torso and frontal alignment suggest a ritualised stillness typical of “blolo bla” (spirit spouse) or protective spirit representations, even when the object is also read as a prestige or altar figure. The vessel held in both hands introduces a clear ritual function. It can be interpreted as a container for libation, offerings, or symbolic nourishment. In Baule visual grammar, hands engaged in holding or presenting objects often indicate exchange between worlds: the human and the spiritual. This transforms the figure from a purely aesthetic object into an active mediator, likely connected to domestic cult practice or divinatory contexts. Stylistically, Yamoussoukro-area Baule sculptures tend to show a slightly more monumental clarity compared to northern Baule schools such as Sakassou or Bouaké. The volumes are smoother, the transitions between torso, arms, and thighs more continuous, and the facial expression more restrained. The coiffure, typically carefully segmented or crest-like, reinforces the ideal of cultivated beauty and social order. The overall effect is one of contained dignity rather than expressive dynamism. The presence of the Ashanti stool form is particularly important here. It places the sculpture within a broader Akan visual vocabulary where stools are not only furniture but spiritual archives of lineage and power. In Baule reinterpretation, this becomes less genealogical and more metaphysical, aligning the object with invisible spouses, protective forces, or ancestral mediations depending on context. In summary, this piece fits a classic central Baule synthesis: Akan-derived regalia (stool), Baule idealised figuration (calm, symmetrical female body), and ritual functionality (vessel as offering or containment object). The Yamoussoukro attribution situates it in a refined, court-influenced production zone where sculptural restraint and symbolic clarity are especially pronounced. Reference list (selection) Christie’s, “Statue Baoulé, Côte d’Ivoire,” catalogue essays on Baule figural typology and Asie usu function, 19th–20th century corpus studies The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Baule Peoples collection entries, spirit spouse (blolo bla / blolo bian) interpretation frameworks Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac, Côte d’Ivoire collections, Baule sculpture and Akan cultural intersections Phillips Collection, African Art catalogues, central Côte d’Ivoire stylistic schools Bernard de Grunne, studies on Baule statuary and atelier attribution in central Côte d’Ivoire Philip Ravenhill, essays on Baule aesthetics and ritual sculpture functions This description was created with the help of our local informant Bakari Bouaflé and additionally with the aid of AI. Despite careful individual verification of the information provided by our informant, errors or inaccuracies may occur in the description due to the use of artificial intelligence. M*A*Z*1*3*5*7*1* The seller guarantees and can prove that the object was obtained legally. The seller was informed by Catawiki that they had to provide the documentation required by the laws and regulations in their country of residence. The seller guarantees and is entitled to sell/export this object. The seller will provide all provenance information known about the object to the buyer. The seller ensures that any necessary permits are/will be arranged. The seller will inform the buyer immediately about any delays in obtaining such permits.