African Arts Gallery

Ngbaka Mask (N° 23833)

The initiation rituals and the African art of the Ngbaka
. This African mask Ngbaka realistically depicts a face whose contours reveal the skeleton. Under the hollow look, graphic patterns correspond to the scarifications in use. The mouth bears metal teeth while a ring adorns one ear. Black satin patina, abrasions and cracks.
Tribe settled on the left bank of the Ubangui, the Ngbaka practice agriculture, and their artistic achievements were inspired by those of the neighboring tribes Ngbandi and Ngombe , with a distinctive feature however, the line of the forehead dotted with linear keloids. They are organized in tribes without political unity, under the tutelage of the chief wan and worship a god named Gale through the worship rendered to the spirits of nature. Young people are prepared for adult life following initiation rituals called " gaza" and trained by former initiates, the bugaza. Their statues usually represent the primordial ancestors Setu and his sister Nabo and are placed on altars for propitiatory rites. The Ngbaka also produced musical instruments that punctuated the closing ceremonies of initiation and circumcision.