Boli: The Bamana People, Mali

Boxed inside thick glass in the African collection at the Cantor Museum, stands an object that is about 20 inches long and approximately 15 inches high. The overly round head is connected to protruding shoulders that dip down into a deep curve of the back. The legs, short and stub-like. Earthy rich browns,
Artist Unknown. Bamana peoples, Mali. Shrine Figure (Boli) 19th century. taupes, and small pops of burnt orange freckle the enigmatic sculpture. The exterior is encrusted with flaky uneven material. The body is plump and bulbous. The surface cracked, revealing its age. The relic is visually stimulating and perplexing. The Cantor provides a title of the object which reads: “Artist Unknown. Bamana peoples, Mali. Shrine Figure (Boli) 19th century”.
It is suggested that the Boli is the most sacred objects of the Bamana. “The word Boli has at least two meanings for the Bamana. In the general sense, a Boli is any magical object used for ritual purposes…In its limited sense a Boli is any object where the most important magical ingredients are hidden in the center of a thick back coating” (Brett-Smith). The Boli held so much power in the Bamana society that it was secretly guarded away from village members. “Komo, a secret male initiation society of priests, elders and blacksmiths form the central nexus of these social institutions and are the sole actors in the formation and dealings of the boliw. They are experts in the transformation and manipulation of the formless-dealers in the excesses of dangerous materials” (Skaggs). The Boli is a reservoir of power and
The process of creation is very meticulous and time consuming. Daliluw, otherwise known as spiritually charged materials such as bones, vegetation, honey, and metal are packed around a wooden bamboo core and wrapped in white cloth (Bickford). The layers are “tightly packed together with a mixture of water from a freshly dug well and a hard, thick patina of earthly elements, detritus - mud and black clay - the surfaces are impregnated with sacrificial materials over time: spit, urine and human excrement, chicken and goat blood, women’s menstrual cloths, chewed kola nuts, beer, palm wine and other alcohol, butter, millet porridge, antelope horns, tusks, porcupine quills, animal hair, bird skulls, jawbones, feathers, fibers, cotton, wood, bark, tree roots, herbs, grasses, organic materials, nails, precious metals including gold, mirrors and amorphous, unidentifiable and undocumented material bundles are added to the surface” (Skaggs). It is believed that “layering of material represents the layering of secret knowledge and imbue the Boli with nyama” (Bickford). The Bamana peoples believe that each layer of the Boli is made of various parts of earthly material that is a part of the universe. Even after human interaction the Boil continues to manifest it’s mystic powers due to age. The Boli will crumble and crack from age reigniting the powers that reside in the core of the