Dogon Female ancestor

These statues named Ogol, after the village they were found in. They belong to the women and symbolized the female ancestor. They are kept by the women's society and brought out to the terrace, to ward off sterility, to ensure a good pregnancy, and during childbirths. They were also used in the course of weaving sessions where young women were taught, and during initiation ceremonies ending with excision of the clitoris. They were also displayed at rain and burials rituals on the terrace, outside the house of the dead, from which they derive the name –'dege dal ndb' - 'Terrace Sculpture'. (H. Leloup, Dogon Sculpture 1994:fig. 84, 85).