African Arts Gallery

Protective fetish consecrated by the priest nganga, carrying a magic charge lodged on the abdomen in a glazed cavity, and on the back, in a crusty matrix. The amalgam or bilongo consisted of various ingredients from the natural environment including red clay, red wood powder tukula, white clay pembe... The eyes are also encrusted with mirror fragments. Polychrome patina. Desication cracks, abrasions.
Among the Kongo, the specialist named nganga, was in charge of the rituals by activating a spiritual force with an nkondi (pl. nkissi). The term nkisi was then used to designate the notions of "sacred" or "divine". The Minkisi would be divided into two types: those who are in charge of punishing offenders, and those who promote fertility and prosperity. These protective fetishes for ...

Small ritual sculpture depicting a woman whose face evokes the mask Mfondo or Nkaki. Lwalwa statuary, rare, is linked to the fertility rites of the secret female society. Clear mahogany satin smooth patina. Cracks and abrasions.
This is near the Kasai River that the Lwalwa live, between Angola and Zaire. Historically with a matrilineal society, the Lwalwa, after having been influenced by Luba and Songy, adopted a patrilineal system within their rudimentary political and social organization. The nkaki, wood-carved mulela mask, is one of four types of masks produced by the privileged caste formed by their sculptors: These craftsmen, according to their merits, can become conductors and organize dances, including the balango, (also bangongo) during which acrobatics are performed by ...

Like the Legas, the Zimbas have educational sculptures associated with initiation rites, but they also have anthropomorphic sculptures, in this case in terracotta, with openings for magical charges at the top of the head.
Erosions, heterogeneous patina with residual ochre incrustations.
The Zimba, also called Binja, are close neighbors of the Lega of the Pangi and Shabunda region of the DRC. Subject to Lega influence, they share some institutional similarities with the Lega and Luba. Whether they live in the forest or in the savannah, the symbolism of their art and rituals are associated with hunting, which is of major importance. They are also patrilineal groups that have eventually supplanted the matrilineal organization of their society. Like the Lega, the ...

The slightly asymmetrical design gives this rare Kuba statuette a unique character, leaving the lasting imprint of its creator. Expressionist features are distinguished by an oversized, grimacing, toothy mouth. From the body entirely streaked with hatching, the umbilicus and sex protrude. Satin black patina. Abrasions.
The Kuba and the tribes established between the Sankuru and Kasai rivers, including the Bushoong and Dengese also originating from the Mongo group, are renowned for the refinement of prestige objects created for members of the high ranks of their society. The Kuba kingdom was founded in the 16th century by the Bushoong who are still led today by a king or nyim, considered to be of divine origin, inspiring the statuary of the ethnic group. Both head of the kingdom ...

Ancestor statuette marked with keloid signs testifying to the successive stages of initiation to which the individual was subjected. A bilongo load is attached to the back. Sometimes set with ivory or earthenware, the almond-shaped eyes are encrusted with bone. Brilliant orange-brown patina.
Established on the plateaus of the People's Republic of Congo ex. Brazzaville, and not to be confused with the Bembe group north of Lake Tanganinyika, the small Bwende group was influenced by Téké rites and culture , but especially by that of the Kongo. The Vili, the Lâri, the Sûndi, the Woyo, the Bembe, the Bwende, the Yombé and the Kôngo constituted the Kôngo group, led by king ntotela. Their kingdom reached its peak in the 16th century with the trade in ivory, copper and the slave trade. With ...

Small figure with a heart-shaped face crossed by a long nasal bridge framed by button eyes. The hunchbacked torso includes growths representing arms, specific to the sculpture of the Ubangi region. The functions of these statuettes are comparable to those of the Ngbaka of the Mani-Yanda society, within the framework of therapeutic rites or in preparation before the hunts. Brown patina with reddish encrustations. Lack, abrasions.
The banda group, Mbanza, Mabanja, or Banza, made up of about fifty sub-groups, dispersed in Sudan, southern Chad, the Central African Republic, and the North-West of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It has various initiatory associations dedicated to spirits and uses sculptures. Banda sculptural traditions have influenced the ethnic groups of Ubangui, ...

African art and Vodun tribal worship of the Ewe and Fon populations
This sculpture represents a kneeling woman on a circular base, hands placed under the breasts. The physiognomy is crude. The whole thing is coated with crusty dark pigments. Desication crack.
In Togo, African fetishes are part of rituals according to the intentions of their owner. Witch doctors, following the fa divination ritual using palm nuts, make them to order to offer protective and medicinal properties, but also offer more classic ready-to-use versions.


The Ewe, often confused with the Minas, are Togo's largest ethnic group. They are also found as minorities in Ghana, Benin, Côte d'Ivoire and Nigeria. According to Hélène Joubert, the cults rendered to the Yoruba gods, the orisha, and ...

African fetish Nkisi, nkishi (pl. mankishi) of the Songye whose oversized feet rest on a pedestal. This sculpture, more realistic than usual, has been deprived of some of its accessories and ritual talismans, their location still being visible.
Abraded spotted patina, kaolin highlights.
Desication cracks, erosions.
These fetishes of protection against various evils would play the role of mediator between god and men. The large specimens are generally the collective property of the village, the more modest figures being reserved for individual worship.
In the 16th century, the Songyes migrated from the Shaba region to settle on the left bank of the Lualaba. Their society is organized in a patriarchal way. Their history is inseparable from that of the Luba, to ...

The Nkishi figures of the Songye are renowned for their singular plasticity, such as this human sculpture with a face displaying a toothless grin. The excess is also inscribed in the lower part of the face, the long fingers provocatively holding the bulb of the abdomen, huge feet overhanging the cylindrical base. Satin black patina. Desication crack.
The Songye fetish, magic sculpture Nkisi, nkishi (pl. mankishi), plays among the Songye the role of mediator between gods and men. The large specimens are the collective property of an entire village, the smaller figures belonging to an individual or a family. In the 16th century, the Songyes migrated from the Shaba region to settle in Kasai, Katanga and South Kivu. Their society is organized in a patriarchal way. Their history is ...

Sculpted figurine represented perched on a stool. Numerous erosions.
The Luba (Baluba in Chiluba) are a people of Central Africa. Their cradle is Katanga, more precisely the region of the Lubu river, thus the name (Baluba, which means “the Lubas”). They were born from a secession of the Songhoy ethnic group, under the leadership of Ilunga Kalala who killed the old king Kongolo who has since been revered in the form of a python. In the 16th century they created a state, organized as a decentralized chiefdom, which stretched from the Kasai River to Lake Tanganyika. The chiefdoms cover a small territory without any real border which includes at most three villages. The Luba have mainly two types of figures: the mikisi mihasi , embodying deceased relatives or spirits, and the mikisi ...

Carved in dense wood, this bust figure adopts the physiognomy of the African kifwebe mask from the Bwadi ka bifwebe society. The bishimba magic charge, with a protective aim, is absent. Glossy patina, cracks.
The Songye fetish, magic sculpture Nkisi, nkishi (pl. mankishi), plays the role of mediator between gods and men. The large specimens are the collective property of an entire village, the more modest figures reserved for individual or family use. In the 16th century, the Songyes migrated from the Shaba region to settle in Kasai, Katanga and South Kivu. Their society is organized in a patriarchal way. Their history is inseparable from that of the Luba, to whom they are related through common ancestors. Very present in their society, divination made it possible to discover ...

Consecrated by the nganga, endowed with a magic charge (bilongo) composed of disparate elements in a receptacle closed off by a mirror, this statuette brings together the distinctive elements of the nkisi sculptures. The Vili produced a variety of sculptures for individual use nkisi, to which multiple virtues were attributed. Dabs a face with naturalistic features, the glazed eyes, circled with a resin, symbolize clairvoyance. Eroded base. Satin black patina.
The Vili, the Lâri, the Sûndi, the Woyo, the Bembe, the Bwende, the Yombé and the Kôngo formed the Kôngo group, led by King ntotela . Present along the Gabonese coast, the Vili broke away from the Kongo kingdom in the 16th century and the Loango kingdom became a powerful state. Now urbanized for the most part, they ...

From the southwestern region of the Tetela territory, this sculpture forms a schematic interpretation of Songye fetishes. The head reproduces a Kifwebe mask. Impaired base. Erosions at the top. Skate mate rather clear.
Eparated in the Kasai Basin, the Tetela of Mongo origin have been the source of incessant conflicts with their neighbours. They also participated extensively in the slave trade. Their very diverse sculpture is marked by the influence of groups living in contact with them: in the North, their art has been subjected to the influence of forest populations such as the Mongo, in the northwest that of Nkutschu, and in the west that of Binji and Mputu. The traditions Kuba were also a source of inspiration, as were those of the Songye to the southwest. Their fetishes are ...

African art and fetishes nkisi
This fetish statue Nkisi , nkishi (pl. mankishi) does not seem to have passed into the hands of the fetishist, the umbilical, hollowed out in cup, not having a magic charge. Other elements strengthening its "power ", and associated with rituals, such as horn, necklaces, insertion or metal veneer, being also absent. The particularity of these objects most often resides in the angular treatment of the form, the imposing triangular face whose chin blends into the beard, the mouth cracks raised in rictus, and the attitude deported to the front of the bulging belly. Dark brown patina with blackish residual inlays, satin touch. Desication cracks.

These home protection fetishes are among the most prized in Africa. Nkisi plays the role of mediator ...

br>Often associated with the therapeutic cult of the Hamba type, this type of female figure for personal use incarnates a female ancestor believed to guarantee fertility or healing. They could be arranged around the muyombo altar, a tree at the foot of which sacrifices and offerings were once made.
Glossy patina with abrasions of use.

Traces of ocher pigments. Crack at the base. Peacefully settled in eastern Angola until the 16th century, the Chokwé were then subjected to the Lunda empire from which they inherited a new hierarchical system and the sacredness of power. Nevertheless, the Chokwé never fully adopted these new social and political contributions. Three centuries later, they ended up seizing the capital of the Lunda weakened by internal conflicts, thus ...

These African statuettes , ritual charms belonging to the lineages and ensuring protection against enemies, were made following the instructions of Nganga ngoombu and the sponsor of the object. The traditional sculptures were then activated with rituals and incantatory formulas, and additions in the form of talismans or medicinal substances. The characteristic headdress is that of the heads of land. These sculptures were often hung in the boxes. Satin patina, abrasions.
Hierarchical and authoritarian, made up of formidable warriors, Yaka society was governed by lineage chiefs with the right to life and death over their subjects. Hunting and the resulting prestige are the opportunity nowadays for the Yaka to invoke ancestors and to evoke rituals with the help of ...

The Vili, the Lâri, the Sûndi, the Woyo, the Bembé, the Bwende, the Yombé and the Kôngo were the Kôngo group, led by king ntotela. Their kingdom reached its peak in the 16th century with the ivory, copper and slave trade. Similarly, beliefs and traditions, they produced a statuary with a codified gesture in relation to their worldview. Among the Kongo, nganga took care of rituals by activating a spiritual force with a nkondi (pl. nkissi). The term nkisi was then used to refer to the terms of 'sacred' or 'divine'.
The statuette, hands joining on the sternum, seems to fit the category of Lumweno , designed to protect what surrounds the birth of twins who would be endowed with powerful abilities. The mother will therefore have a fetish sculpted in order to divert any evil force. ...

Ex-Luxembourg African art collection.

A small Songye sculpture, finely detailed and devoid of accessories such as the horn at the top in which the magical ingredients were housed. The abdominal cup is also empty. Patient chocolate satin.
The Songye came from the Shaba region of DRC and settled along the Lualaba river in the middle of savannah and forests. Their society is organized in a patriarchal way. Their history is inseparable from that of the Luba to whom they are related through common ancestors. Very present in their society, divination allowed them to discover sorcerers and to shed light on the causes of the misfortunes that befell individuals. They are governed by the yakitengé and by local chiefs. The secret society Bwami counterbalances their power, ...

Ex-collection Belgian African art.
Sculpture whose base is damaged, it represents a hermaphrodite being whose hands rest on either side of a bulbous abdomen, into which a magical charge is usually introduced. The statuette without its accessories is capped with a curious pointed cap. Semi-satinized smooth patina. These fetishes of protection intended for housing are among the most prized in Africa. The Nkisi plays the role of mediator between gods and men. The large specimens are the collective property of an entire village, while the smaller figures belong to an individual or a family. In the sixteenth century, the Songyes migrated from the Shaba region to settle on the left bank of the Lualaba River. Their society is organized in a patriarchal way. Their history is ...

This small statuette with an androgynous character has a male face extending with a small beard while a strong chest is associated with fertility. The reduced legs, massive and crenellated, are also one of the characteristics of suku sculptures. The chiefs used fetishes named bwene , bisungu representing the ancestor of the clan. Dark patina, residual clay inlays. Cracks.
The Suku and Yaka ethnic groups, very close geographically in the south-west of the Democratic Republic of Congo, have the same social and political structure as well as similar cultural practices. They can only be differentiated by their stylistic variations. Their carved wooden figures, through which they honour their ancestors, and their masks are well known.

Established between the Republic of Congo, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Gabon, the Teké were organized into chiefdoms whose leader was often chosen from among the blacksmiths. The head of the family, mfumu , had the right to life or death over his family whose importance determined his prestige. The clan leader, gantsié , retained the great protective fetish tar mantsié who oversaw all the ceremonies. It is the powerful sorcerer healer and soothsayer who wascharged" of magical elements, for retribution, the individual statuettes, "mussassi". It was also according to his instructions that worship was given to the ancestors and geniuses of nature. Their secret society, kidumu , used circular flat masks adorned with polychrome geometric patterns. This fetish with a dorsal orifice ...