African Arts Gallery

Percussion musical instrument of the 'a target'_blank' 'new'nofollow' href'https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Mangbetu_ (people)'' Mangbetu, , this half-moon-shaped wooden idiophone has been fitted with a long slot that acts as a resonant opening. It is endowed with an anthropomorphic handle that includes the features of the ancestor figures nebeli .
The Mangebetu Kingdom in northern Congo produced architectural works that impressed European visitors in the 19th century. Their furniture, weapons, adornments and statuary were imbued with a rare aesthetic quality. The ethnologist G.A. Schweinfurth in 1870 described its symmetry and refinement, while at the same time testifying to the ritual killings and human sacrifices practiced by the people of elongated heads. The slot drum is not only a musical instrument animating dance but also a vector of speech, since it serves to communicate messages: invitations to gatherings, various announcements, etc. In Central Africa, the ritualist, the only one authorized to use the instrument, also seeks to attract the attention of the spirits through the sound produced by the chopsticks struck on the slot.