Cameroonian Namji People Fertility Charm: "Ndungu"
Collection: Everyday Connections
Object Category: Charms and Talismans
Object Type: Fertility Charms
Country: Cameroon
Continent: Africa
Geographic Region: Middle Africa
width: 5 in;
height: 11 in;
depth: 2 in
These "ndungu" dolls are carried by young girls and/or by Namji women who ae having a difficult time conceiving. The doll serves as a surrogate baby that is named, coddled, fed talked to just as a real infant would be. These doll-like figure were used for ritual purposes, as a protective fetish figure with beads and magical additions, or, in simpler pieces, as a fertility figure for young women.
Source:
http://www.hamillgallery.com/NAMJI/NamjiDolls/Namji.html