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Sra (Zlan) Belewale Male Figure Dan Liberia

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Rare Dan Tribe Liberian Lu Me male figure, carver: Sra (Zlan) of Belewale, early 20th century, inset metal teeth, with powerful legs, woven breechcloth (later added), slender torso and arms hanging freely. A genuine portrait, rather than ancestral figure or representation of spirit. 26.5"h. The possession of such a figure was a mark of status. In contrast to most African figures, these are naturalistic. Reference: The Arts of the Dan in West Africa, Eberhard Fischer and Hans Himmelheber, Museum Ritberg Zurich, 1976, accompanied the following letter by Dr. William C. Siegmann: The best known carver of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century in central Liberia was Sra of Belewale. Sra was the son of Pei a noted carver himself. Sra learned to carve at an early age and gained fame as a creator of masks, figures and ceremonial ladles. He worked for both Dan and We chiefs and wealthy patrons in a style normally thought of as Dan though he himself was actually We. Working in the first half of the twentieth century, he produced figurative sculptures as tour de force works kept by chiefs, Liberian government officials and wealthy patrons as prestige items. The present figure characteristically has the spatulate hands, feet resting on shallow platforms, and elaborate scarification on back and abdomen that identify Sra's work. Male figures are far less common than female images and it is possible that this piece was originally part of a pair like those illustrated in Four Sculptors by Barbara C. Johnson. William C. Siegmann, Barbara C. Johnson, Four Dan Sculptors, Continuity and Change. Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, 1986.

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