This extraordinary vintage Baule figure from Ivory Coast is characteristic of a style of carving unique to the Baule: carved almost completely in very fine detail, then covered with gold leaf. The gold was probably removed when the item was sold, although many small patches remain. Typical of Akan peoples, of which the Baule are one, this figure of an eagle on top of a turtle represents a proverb, a representation of tribal wisdom: the power of the eagle is not greater than the strength of the turtle.