African Arts Gallery

Ex-French collection of African art.

Different versions of Fang Byeri statues make up African art. Male figure embodying an éyéma-o-byeri ancestor presenting an object of power. These statues were enthroned on the cylindrical bark chests containing the bones of the notables of the clan. Shiny brown patina.
The peoples known as Fang, or "Pahouins", described as conquering warriors, invaded by successive leaps, from village to village, the entire vast region between Sanaga in Cameroon and Ogooué in Gabon, between the 18th and the beginning of the 20th century.
At the bottom of their huts, in a dark and often smoky corner, the heads of lineages carefully stored their Byéri, the relic chests and the sculptures which “watched” them. The daily life of the Fang consisted of three priorities: perpetuating social identity, surviving in a hostile natural environment, dialoguing with the deceased to distance them from the living. (Louis Perrois)