This solid-looking figure of a standing woman (?) is a refined yet mysterious African sculpture. It is of very powerful and monolithic construction, the legs barely differentiated, the torso very short and the limbs heavily reduced. The head is short and rectangular, the eyes rendered as mere slits, separated by a simplistic, straight nose. The head is surmounted by an eminence, presumably representing a hat. On closer examination, the figure has no arms, and the blocks where they should be are breasts, heavily rubbed and eroded. The patination is superb, deep and glossy.
The affinity of this piece is uncertain. The barely-visible cheek markings suggest an origin in Tanzania with such groups as the Haya or Tongwe, but the blocky nature of the construction makes this attribution uncertain. Nevertheless, it embodies a major element of African art, and is clearly intended to represent fecundity, fertility and femininity. This is an impressive piece of African art.