African Arts Gallery

Ex-collection Belgian African art.

Due to the expansion of the former Jukun Empire, the Jukun or Wurbo of Nigeria split into two groups: one established south of the Donga River and the second north of the region near Mumuye. and Wurkum. The attacks of the Chamba first, then of the Fulani, contributed to the extinction of this kingdom. Their king Aka uku, considered semi-diviner, is also their intermediary with the royal ancestors, through rituals including the sacrifice of the king in case of plague or bad harvest. The southern Jukun have a tradition of masks, including the akuma male mask associated with the cult of the same name and of which four types were listed by A.Rubin. They are often endowed with horns evoking the ram or the antelope, in connection with the cult Akuma. Statues are rare, and belong to the widespread cult of mam in eastern Nigeria. They represent the deceased leaders, their wives and their entourage. They are exhibited during ceremonies related to harvest and rain, and during crises. They also know pairs of statues named anhebi, which are planted in the soil to protect crops. (Art of the Upper Benue River, C. Evers, and African Art, Kerchache) From a tubular base with a jaw rises a rectangular plank perforated in its center with a groove punctuated by a conical protrusion . The surface is hollowed out by a succession of triangular patterns underlined by red seeds of sharp edged with the use of kaolin in the hollows. Desiccation furrow around the base.