Carving brought back from DR

My co-worker just came back from the Dominican Republic. She brought to me a wood carving resembling a little man. He's about four inches high and looks rather like he is sitting with his hands on his knees. The head is roughly egg-shaped with two horizontal lines across the forehead and one horizontal line below the eyes. The eyes are relatively large circles. My co-worker said that she saw many of these little carvings at the market on the beach where she bought it. I was curious to find out if it has any special meaning. If you have any idea what this little statue symbolizes, if anything, please let me know. Thanks so much for your input!

This sounds like an idol of the Taino Indian "cohoba" ritual. These idols represent some of the many Taino "cem?es" or spirits. The Tainos are known today as the Mayas of the Caribbean. Discovery Channel did a special on them, you may also check the Encyclopedia Britannica on the web for more information on the carving.