Double Altar Vessel

The Lobi make double pots to aid in the treatment of ailing twins. The birth of twins is considered a blessing, and when they become ill it is diagnosed as a supernatural concern that must be addressed to the protective spirit of the father's family. The relatives commission a double pot, which is placed on the father's alar and contains a specially brewed medicine that is used to bathe the twins. According to Klaus Schneider, who has conducted an extensive study of Lobi pottery, double pots are always made with rounded bottoms and without figural embellishment. This double vessel has a flat bottom and flat lids, and is embellished with a male figure on one pot and a female figure on the other, suggesting that it may come from a closely related, but stylistically independent, tradition.