Mossi Poupee or Biiga Dolls

Many tribal groups in West Africa use dolls, known as poupee. The poupee crafted by the Mossi People of Burkina Faso are among the most distinctive on the entire African continent, perhaps because they have such a modern feeling.

Like all other dolls in Africa, Mossi dolls are created for play and magic and represent humans with spiritual powers. They always have a semi-circular head, a cylindrical shape, breasts, sometimes a navel, and usually no arms or hands, artistic devices not even understood by the carvers who create them.

These three dolls are covered in stitched leather. They undoubtedly came from the hand of the same carver and may even have been used by relatives or siblings. Each is a unique, rare example. Their most probable use was to insure fertility, a concept with many undertones of meaning. Now, they can be used as fantastic décor, maybe even for fertility, but above all as reminders of how much we share with cultures found worlds away.

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