2-727-269 - Heritage Art/Heritage Images

Divination Implement, late 1800s-early 1900s. Used in an intimate setting, this device helped contact an ancestral spirit who clarified misfortunes. Rather than relying on trance, the diviner awakened the ancestor by anointing the surface of the wooden figure, a rectangular frame surmounted by a female head, with pungent basil leaves. Sitting on a textured woven mat, the diviner held one side of the instrument while his client held the other. The diviner then posed questions to the ancestor who responded through movement: a movement back and forth indicated a negative response; a circular motion signaled affirmation. Revealing a lifetime of use and loving care, this divination device shows a heavily eroded base resulting from friction with the mat.