This video was full of surprises. I love the primordial couple theory, though I can appreciate the caution for it. I'm curious about who these figures represent and what kinds of sacrifices were made with them / why. I wasn't expecting the figures on their backs. It's a reminder to be thorough and attentive to detail the next time I'm walking around in a museum (which will hopefully be soon). Front / back speech was kinda funny because it made me think of my mom using her full-blown Patois with us and then cleaning it up when she answers the phone or is out in public. That's real, lol. I could go on, but suffice to say, there was much to learn in this 5.5 minutes.
Very good, but I think it is important, especially as so little context is known, to say something about the techniques and the material presence of this splendid work. It's cylindrical form, given by the wood of the tree, is clearly seen in the base, which defines the outward limits of the figures. The sculptor has been very conscious of the grain, running from top to bottom of the cylinder. His deft initial cuts, probably with a cross-bladed adze, ran with the grain or cut at right-angles against it, with very little diagonal direction. This has defined the underlying form of the piece.
