Animal masks and African decoration. African mask named vaca bruto in Creole, provided with real horns, and coming from the Bidjogo , established in the Bissagos archipelago made up of around thirty islands located off the coast of Guinea-Bissau. The mask is worn before or at the end of initiation ceremonies, by a young “cabaro” initiate, who will bend and rear up, conveying the idea of a young animal that is vigorous but still untamed, and the need to go through the initiatory process in order to acquire discipline and mastery. Minor abrasions and desiccation cracks. Matte patina.
View details Bidjogo Mask
380.00 280.00 €
In Mali, the didactic masquerades of the sogobo are populated by animal masks. This tradition of puppet theater is common to the multi-ethnic peoples living in the interior delta of the Niger, including the Bozo and the Malinké. Unlike the ciwara masks linked to agrarian rites, these zoomorphic masks are masks of theatrical festivities, referring to local myths and tales. Grainy patina of use, desication cracks, alterations. Established in central and southern Mali, in a savannah zone, the Bambara, "Bamana" or "unbelievers", as the Muslims have named them, belong to the large Mande group, with the Soninke and the Malinke. Mainly farmers, but also breeders, they make up the largest ethnic group in Mali. Animists, they believe in the existence of a creator god generically called ...
View details Bamana Mask
290.00 180.00 €
Male figure of tetela inspiration, and whose posture indicates combativeness. This is the reactive, energetic warrior pose called pakalala. Oily black patina. Desication cracks, losses. Scattered throughout the Kasai basin, the Tetela of Mongo origin have been the source of incessant conflicts with their neighbors. They also participated extensively in the slave trade. Their very diversified sculpture is marked by the influence of the groups living in contact with them: in the North, their art was subjected to the influence of the populations of the forest such as the Mongo, in the northwest that of the Nkutschu, and to the west that of Binji and Mputu. Kuba traditions have also been a source of inspiration, as well as those of the Songye in the southwest. Their fetishes are kept ...
View details Tetela Statue
240.00 120.00 €
This African mask embodies the spirit of a primate. Beneath the eyebrow arches between which a long nose points, the grimace in a bulging chin squints the eyelids in coffee bean. Abrasions revealing remnants of a polychrome pastillage. Break under the chin. Only two types of Hemba masks have been identified: that of an anthropomorphic type with regular features, whose pointed chin recalls statuary, and those depicting monkeys, the soko mutu , and whose functions remain little known, but which probably belonged, according to J.Kerchache, to the secret societies bugabo and bambudye . The smallest copies (about 20 centimetres) are said to have been carried by hand during rituals intended for the protection of the home and fertility. In addition to the janiform statuettes kabeja, the ...
View details Hemba Mask
150.00 90.00 €
Mask with a face printed with a dark median band, hollowed out pupils, and a mouth revealing traditionally filed teeth. The hairstyle is composed of braids gathered in shells. Two-tone patina. Abrasions and erosions. 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 nevertheless still integrate traditional associations, dependent on ancestor worship such as the Mbouiti or the Bieri. Like the Kongo group, in order to protect themselves against witchcraft and various plagues, they produce a wide variety of magical ritual objects of the nkisi type. Their masks are used by the Ndunga or Djembe association, but also for the funerals of ...
View details Vili mask
240.00 90.00 €
This female figure with a tiered hairstyle has a mboko" , calabash that was filled with kaolin, symbolizing purity and the spiritual world. These containers were used by different Luba societies, more generally by the mediums of the divination society Kilumbu, Bilumbu, or by the healers of the society Buhabo . The soothsayers Mbudye also used it. The faces of these characters embodying the guardian spirits show a peaceful interiority. According to P.Nooter these figures also represented the soothsayer's wife, which underlines its importance in the divination process bilumbu . According to some Luba, however, although a woman, she would represent the first soothsayer Luba, and would also be an allegory of royalty linked to the powerful society of the Mbudye associated with royal power. ...
View details Statue Luba
180.00 80.00 €
Evocation of vigor and power, this masculine sculpture offers a solid morphology made up of diamonds. Smooth black patina, desication cracks. Migratory flows have mixed within the same territories Bembe , Lega , Buyu (Buye) or Boyo , Binji and Bangubangu. The Basikasingo, considered by some to be a Buyu sub-clan, are however not of Bembe origin, Biebuyck's work having made it possible to trace their history. Organized into lineages, they borrowed the association of Bwami from the Lega. The bembe and boyo traditions are relatively similar: they venerate the spirits of nature, of water specifically among the Boyo, but also the heroic ancestors, whose will we seek to know by means of divinatory rites. The hunt is also an opportunity to perform sacrifices of gratitude towards the ...
View details Buyu Statue
240.00 95.00 €
This female-type mask accompanied the voluminous kakungu mask during ceremonies. Greasy dark patina, locally abraded. Native restoration. The Suku and Yaka ethnic groups recognize common origins and have the same social structure as well as similar cultural practices. They can only be differentiated by their stylistic variations. The mukanda is the name given to all the rites around the initiation ceremony of pubescent young people, consecrating the end of childhood and shared by many communities. Suku kakungu masks are reputed to be among the largest masks in Black Africa. Their exaggerated features, swollen and hanging cheeks, massive features and prominent chins were to inspire fear in the spectators. These masks supposed to control the rain were out during the initiation ...
View details Suku mask
280.00 120.00 €
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 ...
View details Kuba figure
In African art, this anthropomorphic sculpture of the Lega, lacking arms, was intended for an initiate of the Bwami . It was part of a set used throughout the initiations. The teacher guided the lega aspirant to a place where African lega masks and statuettes were displayed, and it was through careful observation that the future initiate had to guess the more or less complex meaning of these objects, true metaphors referring largely to proverbs and sayings. Those who were not allowed to see the object, in order to be protected from it, had to undergo costly ceremonies, and sometimes even join the lower rank of the Bwami,kongabulumbu, at great expense to the families. Each of these initiations took place over seven days and involved at least seven performances. ...
View details Lega statue
180.00 95.00 €
The tribal art of lega, Balega, or Warega, is distinguished by its introductory statuettes, also made of ivory, some of which were kept in a basket for the highest rank of bwami from different communities. This type of statuette of tribal art Iginga ( Maginga plural), was the property of the high-ranking officers of the Bwami , a secret society admitting men and their wives, and governing social life. This organization was subdivided into initiation stages, the highest being the Kindi. The statuettes were used as the aspirants were inited. Each is a representation with a particular form and meaning from which a moral or dogma always derives. The particularity of the Lega, unlike other ethnic groups, is to judge the quality of their ritual objects according to their effectiveness.
View details League figurines
180.00 90.00 €
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, ...
View details Songye Fetish
Former African art collection Mercier br-Les Urhobos, living near the northwest of the Niger Delta River, form the main ethnic group of the Delta State among the 36 states of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. They speak Urhobo, a language of the Niger-Congo group. Together with the Isoko, whose art is close, they are collectively known as Sobo. Their large sculptures depicting the spirits of nature, edjo, or the founding ancestors of the clan, to whom sacrifices were offered, were grouped in shrines within the villages. They also produce figures similar to the ikenga of igbo called iphri , ivwri , of half-animal form half-human. They personify male aggression and are intended for warriors and notables. However, after consultation with the soothsayer, young children can also wear miniature ...
View details Statuette Urhobo
350.00 150.00 €
This figure comes from the Metoko located in the center of the Congolese basin between the Lomami and Lualaba rivers, peoples of the primary forest dedicated to the worship of a single God, monotheism rare in Africa. This piece, cut in three superimposed orange volumes, would form the embodiment of a primordial ancestor. Their company, Bukota, welcoming both men and women, is the equivalent of the association Bwami Lega. Their sculptures, influenced by the neighbouring Mbole, Lega and Binja, played a role in initiation, funeral or circumcision ceremonies, and were then placed on the tomb of high-ranking initiates. Each of these figures had an educational name and meaning, just like the Lega traditions. The Lekas share with the Metoko the institution of the bukota , for which they have ...
View details Statuette Metoko
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.
View details Statuette Suku
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 ...
View details Scepter Téké