Salekhard region, West Siberia, Russia
Nenets or Khanty people
19th century
Carved wood
Height 11 1/4 in (28.6 cm)
Provenance: Private collection, Finland, Helsinki
Among the Nenets and Khanty peoples of the Yamalo-Nenets region, carved wooden figures served as idols or spirit embodiments, used in shamanic ritual as seats of protective or ancestral presence. The schematic human form, rounded head, simplified torso, columnar legs, reflects a deliberate formal restraint consistent with the region's carving tradition, in which the power of such figures was understood to reside in their spiritual function rather than naturalistic detail. Similar figures are documented in Finnish and Russian ethnographic museum collections gathered during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
The figure's wide-shouldered stance and geometric reduction of the human body give it a commanding presence at modest scale. The wood has developed an even, aged surface consistent with handling and outdoor or semi-outdoor ritual use over an extended period. Its provenance from a Finnish private collection in Helsinki reflects the documented proximity of Scandinavian collectors to West Siberian material culture during the ethnographic collection era.
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Salekhard region, West Siberia, Russia
Nenets or Khanty people
19th century
Carved wood
Height 11 1/4 in (28.6 cm)
Provenance: Private collection, Finland, Helsinki
Among the Nenets and Khanty peoples of the Yamalo-Nenets region, carved wooden figures served as idols or spirit embodiments, used in shamanic ritual as seats of protective or ancestral presence. The schematic human form, rounded head, simplified torso, columnar legs, reflects a deliberate formal restraint consistent with the region's carving tradition, in which the power of such figures was understood to reside in their spiritual function rather than naturalistic detail. Similar figures are documented in Finnish and Russian ethnographic museum collections gathered during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
The figure's wide-shouldered stance and geometric reduction of the human body give it a commanding presence at modest scale. The wood has developed an even, aged surface consistent with handling and outdoor or semi-outdoor ritual use over an extended period. Its provenance from a Finnish private collection in Helsinki reflects the documented proximity of Scandinavian collectors to West Siberian material culture during the ethnographic collection era.
We ship free anywhere in the world, fully insured, packed by hand.
