Mossi Biiga Doll Burkina Faso

The Mossi, the largest group in Burkina Faso, trace their origins to Ghana in the 1500s. They're known for elaborate masquerades with vibrant, intricately crafted masks and costumes. These masquerades, featuring masked dancers representing ancestors and natural forces, accompany honored elder's funerals. Sculpted figures called Ninande serve various purposes, often associated with chiefs and elders during ceremonies, symbolizing local political ties and authority. At funerals, some figures are buried with elders, and during annual ceremonies, they're adorned with cloths resembling those worn by Mossi women. The "biiga," though called a doll, transcends mere playthings. For young girls, it signifies the power to bear children and serves as a representation of a baby they learn to care for. Passed down from mother to daughter or sister to sister, the biiga is washed, dressed, and carried like a real child. It undergoes repair by a diviner if damaged and features a cylindrical base, accentuated breasts symbolizing motherhood, a stylized head resembling the gyonfo hairstyle, and realistic scarifications similar to those of the Mossi people.

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