Punu Standing Female Figure on Custom Base Gabon

A Punu female figure standing with an elaborate and distinctively Punu hairstyle. She stands with her knees bent and hands resting on her pregnant belly. This particular carving likely represents an ancestor or spirit to the carver. This piece is fitted with a fine custom base made of finished wood.

The Punu are most famous for their numerous white-faced female masks with scarification patterns and elaborate hairdos. While masks are somewhat ubiquitous, many collectors have probably never even seen a statue. The Punu, like their relatives the Shira and Lumbo, fled the Fang and settled in the equatorial forests of southern Gabon, but little else is known about their history or way of life. They do appear to have connections to the Fang and Kota in their religious and ancestral rituals, but again there is little documentation to back up what is mainly speculation based on the study of their artworks.

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