SALAMPASU  (ASALAMPASU, BASALAMPASU, MPASU)

Democratic Republic of the Congo

The 60,000 Salampasu people live east of the Kasai River, on the frontier between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Angola. Their name is said to mean “hunters of locusts”, but they were widely viewed with terror by adjacent groups. They maintain strong commercial and cultural relations with their southern neighbors, the Chokwe and the Lunda to whom they pay tribute. The Salampasu are homogeneous people governed by territorial chiefs, who supervise village chiefs. Their hierarchical power structure is counterbalanced by a warriors' society. A people with a reputation as fearless warriors, the Salampasu have retained the custom of a rough and primitive life. Warring and hunting are privileged occupations, but the women do some farming.

Salampasu masks were integral part of the warriors’ society whose primary task was to protect this small enclave against invasions by outside kingdoms. Boys were initiated into the warriors’ society through a circumcision camp, and then rose through its ranks by gaining access to a hierarchy of masks. Earning the right to wear a mask involved performing specific deeds and large payments of livestock, drink and other material goods. Once a man ‘owned’ the mask, other ‘owners’ taught this new member particular esoteric knowledge associated with it. The Salampasu use masks made from wood, crocheted raffia, and wood covered with sheets of copper. Famous Salampasu masks made for initiation purposes are characterized by a bulging forehead, slanted eyes, a triangular nose and a rectangular mouth displaying intimidating set of teeth. The heads are often covered with bamboo or raffia or rattan-like decorations. Presented in a progressive order to future initiates, they symbolize the three levels of the society: hunters, warriors, and the chief. Certain masks provoke such terror that women and children flee the village when they hear the mask's name pronounced for fear they will die on the spot. Wooden masks covered or not covered with copper sheets are worn by members of the ibuku warrior association who have killed in battle. The masks made of plaited raffia fiber are used by the idangani association. Throughout the southern savannah region copper was a prerogative of leadership, used to legitimize a person’s or a group’s control of the majority of the people. Possessing many masks indicated not only wealth but also knowledge. Filing teeth making part of many wooden masks was part of the initiation process for both boys and girls designed to demonstrate the novices’ strength and discipline. Salampasu masquerades were held in wooden enclosures decorated with anthropomorphic figures carved in relief. The costume, composed of animal skins, feathers, and fibers, is as important as the mask itself. It has been sacralized, and the spirit dwells within it. Masks are still being danced as part of male circumcision ceremonies.

Ceremonial mask.  A warrior people comprising 60,000 individuals, the Salampasu live in Shaba province between the rivers Lulua and Lueta, tributaries of the Kasai River. Their name is said to mean “hunters of locusts”, but they were widely viewed with terror by adjacent groups. They have retained the customs of a rough and primitive life. The Salampasu live mostly from hunting, but the women do some farming. The masks, regardless of their material composition, are worn in the initiation rites of men’s associations, on occasion of bereavement or enthronement, as well as to pay homage to headhunters. The costume accompanying this type of mask consists of a fiber net adapted to the body, and a skirt of fiber or animal fur. The wearer holds antelope horns or a two-edged sword. Salampasu masquerades were held in wooden enclosures decorated with anthropomorphic figures carved in relief.

Material:  wood, copper sheets, vegetable fiber

Size: 15" x 10" x 9"

SENUFO (SENOUFO, SIENA, SIENNA)

Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana and Mali

The Senufo number 1,000,000 to 1,500,000 and live in Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Burkina Faso, and the extreme south of Mali. They live principally off the fruits of agriculture and occasionally hunting. Senufo agriculture is typical of the region, including millet, sorghum, maize, rice, and yams. They also grow bananas, manioc, and a host of other crops that have been borrowed from cultures throughout the world. Small farm animals such as sheep, goats, chickens, guinea fowl, and dogs are raised. Minimal amounts of hunting and fishing also contribute to the local economy. Labor is divided between farmers and skilled artisans, and while it was once thought that these segments of society did not intermarry, In addition to a belief in a creator deity, ancestors and nature spirits, a central concept in Senufo religion is a female ancestral spirit called “ancient mother” or “ancient woman,” the sacred guiding spirit of each poro society. All adult men belong to the poro society, which maintains the continuity of religious and historical traditions, especially through the cult of the ancestors. The poro is the pillar of communal life. Responsible for initiation and training of the young boys, it is aimed at shaping an accomplished, social man who is integrated to the collective; it aids his entry into public responsibilities. A woman’s association, the sandogo, in charge of divination, is responsible for contact with the bush spirit who might be bothered by the activities of the hunt, farming, or of artisans.

The Senufo produce a rich variety of sculptures, mainly associated with the poro society. The sculptors and metal smiths, endogamous groups responsible for making the cult objects live on their own in a separate part of the village. The attitude shown toward them by other Senufo is a mixture of fear and respect, owing to their privileged relationship with the natural forces that they are capable of channeling in a sculpture. During initiations, headpieces are worn that have a flat, vertical, round or rectangular board on top decorated with paint or pierced work. Many wood carvings of male figures depict these headpieces, sometimes on rhythm pounders used by young initiates, who beat the earth to call upon the ancestors to take part in the ceremony and purify the earth. The carvers also produce ritual female statues, including mother-and-child figures, as well as statuettes depicting bush spirits and supernatural beings and equestrian figures. Large statues representing hornbills (often seen also on masks) and used in the lo society as symbols of fertility are the standing birds called porpianong. Figures of the hornbill are used in initiation, and groups of birds on a pole are trophies for the best farmer. Figures of male and female twins and of horsemen are used in divination. These represent the spirit familiars enabling the divination process. Shrine doors and drums are carved in relief, and small figures and ritual rings are cast in bronze.

Chair

Unlike stools, Chairs in Africa are thought to have been influenced by European models. However, each group incorporates its own styles into the chair design. Used by elders for seating.

Materia: wood

Size: 40" x 23" x 22"

Door. . The Senufo produce a rich variety of sculptures, mainly associated with the Poro society, to which adult men belong and which maintains the continuity of religious and historical traditions, especially through the cult of the ancestors. Senufo carved doors decorate initiation training houses and household protective shrines. Their motifs are associated with esoteric knowledge of divination, bush spirits, and other sources of power, which are acquired secretly in order to combat forces that threaten communal well-being.

Material:  wood.

Size:  68" x 19" x 2"

Material: wood

Size: 38" x 19" x 9"

Female rhythm pounder (deble). The Senufo, about 1 million in number, live mostly in Cote d’Ivoire, but also in Ghana, Burkina Faso and the extreme south of Mali. They are concentrated in villages composed of 800 to 1200 inhabitants, broken up into units of matrilineal lineage descending from a common ancestor. Endogamy within the lineage was forbidden and punishable by death. The Senufo produce a rich variety of sculptures, mainly associated with the Poro society, to which adult men belong and which maintains the continuity of religious and historical traditions, especially through the cult of the ancestors. They have a vital masquerading tradition associated with various male societies, including Poro. Pounders made from a single piece of wood on a circular base are used to provide the rhythm for a dance in the Lo society. Such implements are also used to invoke the spirits of the ancestors, especially at agricultural ceremonies. Such figures are pounded against the ground in time to the music.

Material: wood

Size: 63" x 12" x 12"

Kpelie initiation mask.  The Senufo produce a rich variety of sculptures, mainly associated with the Poro society, to which adult men belong and which maintains the continuity of religious and historical traditions, especially through the cult of the ancestors. The kpelie is an ancestor mask, which is used at the ceremony of the lo society which governed the social life of the tribe. Although the occasions on which it is used may differ, it always represents the face of a female ancestor with formerly common tatooes, closely connected to the society’s origin. According to one source, the kpelie is said to remind initiates of human imperfection. Worn at a funeral, the kpelie masks serve to compel the spirit of the deceased to leave the house.

Material:  wood

Size: 16" x 10" x 4"

40" x 23" x 22"

68" x 19" x 2"

38" x 19" x 9"

63" x 12" x 12"

16" x 10" x 4"

Wanyugo helmet mask. In the southern Senufo region a society known as wabele battles sorcery or negative influences and harmful spirits that appear in form of wild animals or monsters and threaten people in times of crisis or vulnerability. The society’s most important paraphernalia are wanyugo masks, which are considered especially dangerous, even being said to occasionally breathe fire or emit swarms of bees. Design features recalling various wild animals underscore the mask’s aggressiveness: powerful jaws with sharp teeth represent a crocodile’s or hyena’s snout. The mask has extraordinary powers, which came into play in the context of a ceremony.

Material:  wood

Size: 12" x 9" x 19

Equestrian figure (Syonfolo). Most Senufo diviners receive their training as members of Sandogo, a powerful women’s organization that unites female leaders from a community’s various households. Senufo wood and copper-alloy figures that depict equestrian warriors, such as this one, are not essential components of a Sando (member of Sandogo) diviner’ kit. Instead, they constitute artistically accomplished tributes to the professional success of the diviners who commissioned them. The dazzling beauty of these prestige pieces, amplifies the efficacy of the diviner’s basic set of implements by enhancing her ability to attract the interest and favor. Since only the most successful diviners can afford to engage the sculptors to create such works, their ownership and display in turn indicate to the community at large the diviner’s attainment of an exceptional level of professional competence.

Material:  wood

Size: 35" x 7" x 8"

Stools

13" x 16" x 16" each

11" x 23" x 11"

11" x 19" x 16" and

22" x 11" x 15"

SONGYE (BASONGE, BAYEMBE, SONGE, SONGHAY, WASONGA)

Democratic Republic of the Congo

During the 16th century, the Songye migrated from the Shaba area, which is now the southern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Their history is closely linked to the Luba's, to whom the Songye are related through common ancestors. Having waged war against one another for a long time, the Songye and Luba later formed an alliance to fight the Arabs. They settled on the left bank of the Lualaba River, on a savanna and forest-covered plateau. Divided into many subgroups, the 150,000 Songye people are governed by a central chief assisted by innumerable secret societies.

The Songye traditionally relied mostly on farming and hunting for subsistence. Because the rivers were associated with the spirits of deceased chiefs who were often buried in them, fishing was not practiced except in times of great need. The artistic wares of the Songye, including pottery made by women and weaving and metalworking done by men, were traded extensively with their neighbors.

The Songye created a sculptural style of intense dynamism and vitality. The works of Songye craftsmen are often used within the secret societies during various ceremonies. They produced a large number of figures belonging to the fetishist, who manipulates them during the rituals of the full moon. Songye fetish figures vary in size from 4” to 60”. They are usually male and stand on a base. Strips of metal, nails or other paraphernalia are sometimes applied over the face, which counteract evil spirits and aggressors and channel lightings against them. The top of the head and the abdomen are usually hollowed to allow insertion of fetish material, called boanga. These figures adopt a hieratic posture, the hands placed on a pointed abdomen; on top of the head they have a horn or feathers reinforcing a disquieting appearance. The fetishist would make the boanga with magic ingredients, which he crumbled and mixed, thus obtaining a paste that was kept in an antelope horn hung from the roof of the house. The magic ingredients consist of a wide variety of animal, vegetal, mineral and human substances that activate and bring into play benevolent ancestral spirits. The face is often covered with nails, a reminder of smallpox. The style of Songye fetishes, carved from wood or horn and decorated with shells, is not as realistic as the classic Luba style, and their integration of non-naturalistic, more geometric forms is impressive. The figures are used to ensure their success, fertility, and wealth and to protect people against hostile forces as lightning, as well as against diseases such as smallpox, very common in that region. While smaller figures of this type were kept and consulted by individuals, larger ones were responsible for ensuring the welfare of an entire community.

In the Songye language, a mask is a kifwebe: this term has been given to masks representing spirits and characterized by striations. Depending on the region, it may be dark with white strips, or the reverse. The kifwebe masks embodied supernatural forces. The kifwebe society used them to ward off disaster or any threat. The masks, supplemented by a woven costume and a long beard of raffia bast, dance at various ceremonies. They are worn by men who act as police at the behest of a ruler, or to intimidate the enemy. It can be either masculine, if carved with a central crest, or feminine if displaying a plain coiffure. The size of the crest determines the magic power of the mask. Mask, colors, and costume all have symbolic meaning. The dancer who wears the male mask will display aggressive and uncontrolled behavior with the aim of encouraging social conformity, whereas the dancer who wears the female mask display more gentle and controlled movements and is assumed to be associated with reproduction ceremonies. The use of white on the mask symbolizes positive concepts such as purity and peace, the moon and light. Red is associated with blood and fire, courage and fortitude, but also with danger and evil. Female masks essentially reflect positive forces and appear principally in dances held at night, such as during lunar ceremonies and at the investiture or death of a ruler. The mask had also the capacity to heal by means of the supernatural force it was supposed to incorporate. The ritual of exorcism consisted of holding the sick man’s mask while a magician acted as if he were casting it into the fire.  Kifwebe mask representations also appear on other objects belonging to the kifwebe society – grooved shields, for example, are adorned with a central mask. Buffalo masks with a brown patina that have no stripes were used in hunting rituals.

The Songye also produce prestige stools, ceremonial axes, made of iron and copper and decorated with interlaced patterns, neckrests, bracelets and copper adzes.

Songye (Basonge, Bayembe, Songe, Wasonga), Democratic Republic of the Congo

Fetish. The 150,000 Songye settled in the southeast of the country have a strong interest in magic, which affects many aspects of their lives. The Songye carvers excel in the production of fetishes and expressionistic masks. Songye fetish figures vary in size from 4” to 60”. While smaller figures of this type were kept and consulted by individuals, larger ones were responsible for ensuring the welfare of an entire community. These figures adopt a hieratic posture, the hands placed on the abdomen; on top of the head they may have a horn reinforcing a disquieting appearance. The top of the head and the abdomen are usually hollowed to allow insertion of fetish material, called boanga. The fetishist would make the boanga with magic ingredients, which he crumbled and mixed, thus obtaining a paste that was kept in an antelope horn hung from the roof of the house. The magic ingredients consist of a wide variety of animal, vegetal, mineral and human substances that activate and bring into play benevolent ancestral spirits. The fetishes are intended to ward off evil, to preserve the tribe or the family from hostile powers, sorcerers or evil spirits, and to aid fertility.

Material:  wood, shells, rafia

Songye (Basonge, Bayembe, Songe, Wasonga), Democratic Republic of the Congo

Chief’s staff.  Many of ancient Songye traditions have survived, among them the use of staffs as emblems of leadership. Chief’s staffs were both prestige items and receptacles for sacral power. Sanctified by ritual specialists, they took on supernatural qualities and were said to have healing power. A Songye staff is like an enlarged detail of a map, for a staff tells the story of an individual family, lineage, or chiefdom. The map is read vertically, from top to bottom. As one progresses down the staff, it is as if one were journeying across the Songye landscape, through the uninhabited savanna represented by the plain, unadorned staff.

Material: wood

Songye Game Board

Songye (Basonge, Bayembe, Songe, Wasonga), Democratic Republic of the Congo

Protective figurine. The 150,000 Songye live in the southeast of the country. Culturally and linguistically they are related to the Luba. Divided into numerous sub-groups, the Songye are governed by a central chief whose role demands that he obey special restrictive laws such as not showing grief, not drinking in public and not shaking hands with men. The Songye have a strong interest in magic, which affects many aspects of their lives. The Songye create protective figures in a range of sizes. They are thought of as protectors against physical ailments and aggression from outside and are aides related to healing and therapy. They also promote fertility. The present figurine is of this type.

Material:  wood

Kifwebe male mask. In the Songye language, a mask is a kifwebe; this term has been given to masks representing spirits. The kifwebe society used them to ward off disaster or any threat. The mask had also the capacity to heal by means of the supernatural force it was supposed to incorporate. The masks, supplemented by a woven costume and a long beard of raffia bast, dance at various ceremonies. Mask, colors, and costume all have symbolic meaning. The use of white on the mask symbolizes positive concepts such as purity and peace, the moon and light. Red is associated with blood and fire, courage and fortitude, but also with danger and evil. The dancer who wears the male mask will display aggressive and uncontrolled behavior with the aim of encouraging social conformity, whereas the dancer who wears the female mask display more gentle and controlled movements and is assumed to be associated with reproduction ceremonies. The female mask distinguishes from the male one by the absence of a crest on top of the head. The wave-like pattern of broad stripes in contrasting color may provide a hint as to the region of origin -- perhaps that of the eastern Songye.

Material:  wood

38" x 13" x 13

35" x 4" x 2"

17" x 8" x 5"

23" x 13" x 11"

Material:  wood

Size: 44" x 22" x 9"

SUKU (BASUKU)

Democratic Republic of the Congo

The 80,000 Suku people have lived in the southwestern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo since the 16th century. Their main economic resource is farming. Cultivation of yams, manioc, and groundnuts is done primarily by women. This is supplemented by the men hunting with dogs in the surrounding forest and by the women gathering wild berries, nuts, and roots. Occasional fishing in the Kwango River also provides some food. Although hunting rarely provides substantial quantities of meat to the Suku diet, it is considered an important part of male culture. Palm tree plantations provide the Suku with palm oil, an important commodity for local and international trade.

The wood sculpture is a royal court art linked to the social hierarchy. The statues that contain magic ingredients have malevolent or beneficial functions. The medications are placed in the figure’s abdomen, which is closed up with a resin stopper, or enclosed in small bags hung around the neck or waist. The statue is kept in a hut that stands with in the enclosure of the chief’s house. The Suku of the north have statues, the mulomba: these have one hand outstretched to solicit a gift. The sculptures wear the hairdo typical of the chiefs of the territory and lineage. The Suku also carve figures, which are used during fertility ceremonies and kneeling or crouching fetish figures. These are used either as ancestor figures or as the personification of the evil spirit.

Suku

Suku Protective figurine

Suku. Kakungu ceremonial mask. The 80,000 Suku inhabit the Southwest of the DRC. Their main economic resources are farming and hunt. In Suku society, boys’ coming-of-age preparation is the responsibility of the Nkanda association. In the seclusion of lodges located outside the village, boys between the ages of ten and fifteen years are taught the history and traditions of their people and undergo obligatory circumcision. They also learn the songs and dances that will be performed at their initiation ceremonies. Several different masks are used in the Nkanda graduation ceremonies. Kakungu is the largest of the initiation masks. The mask appears on the day of circumcision and again when the young man leaves the lodges to return to the village. Kakungu masks instill in the young men obedience and respect for their elders. These masks are also protective, threatening anyone suspected of harboring evil intentions against the initiates. They are also called upon for the treatment of impotence and sterility. The kakungu mask has assertive and impressive form, with a large forehead and bulging cheeks. When not in use, they are displayed in shrines.

Material:  wood, raffia

Size:  36" x 21" x 8" with raffia

Suku. Ceremonial Mask

Material: wood, pigments, raffia

Size: 19" x 13" x 11 + raffia
THIS ITEM HAS BEEN SOLD (SWEDEN)

Ceremonial Mask

Material: wood

Size: 24" x 10" x 12"

Ceremonial Mask

Material: wood

Size:

27" x 13" x 10"

TABWA

Democratic Republic of the Congo and Zambia

The Tabwa people lived under Luba domination in small autonomous villages scattered within a territory that expanded from the southeast of the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the northeast of Zambia, along Lake Tanganyika.  The verb "tabwa" means "to be tied up" and refers to when these people were taken as slaves. During the 19th century, the ivory trade brought wealth to the region and Tabwa people gained their independence. Today, they number 200,000 and are led by chiefs-sorcerers who rule over village chiefs and family chiefs. Their power is counterbalanced by male societies created on Luba prototypes and by female associations influenced by East African models. Traditionally, Tabwa people made their living from hunting and blacksmithing; nowadays they cultivate millet, manioc, cassava, beans, and corn, but they live primarily off fishing and hunting, for game is plentiful. The influence of Eastern Tanzanian neighbors on Tabwa art is seen in their use of linear geometric decorations, while their western neighbors, the Luba, influenced the incorporation of prestige objects into Tabwa life. The Tabwa worshipped ancestors, whose statues were the property of the lineage chiefs and sorcerers; these carried “medications” in their ears or in small cavities at the top of their heads. The Tabwa also worshipped the spirits of nature, who lived in trees and rocks. The installation of a supreme chief is of relatively recent vintage; formerly it was the function of the large ancestor figures to consolidate the power of the chiefs. Other statuettes were used for divination. The Tabwa also made twin figures that could be both dangerous and bearers of good luck. In the north of Tabwa country, the diviner was also a sculptor; consulted after a dream, he would create a new statue. Special attention was paid to scarifications, which embellish the body and recall social values. On the whole surface of the body, a recurrent motif consists of twinned isosceles triangles, the two bases of which symbolize the duality of life. They evoke the coming of the new moon, essential to Tabwa philosophy, whose return would be celebrated monthly.

The Tabwa used two types of masks: a human one, which represented woman, and another in the form of a buffalo head, which represented man. Both would make an appearance at the time of the fecundity ritual, celebrated for sterile women. One also finds paddles, combs, and musical instruments with figurines.

Lake Tanganyika and some part of the northeastern Zambia. They are led by chiefs-sorcerers who rule over village chiefs and family chiefs. Their power is counterbalanced by male societies created on Luba prototypes and by female associations influenced by East African models. Traditionally, Tabwa people made their living from hunting and blacksmithing; nowadays they cultivate millet, manioc, and corn, but they live primarily off fishing and hunting. The Tabwa worshipped ancestors, whose statues were the property of the lineage chiefs and sorcerers. Tabwa lineage elders kept small wooden images to represent and honor ancestor spirits, great healers, and occasionally earth spirits. The figure displays elaborate scars. Such adornment was esthetically pleasing and served as visual metaphors that implied positive social values and the harmony of natural forces.

Material: wood

Size: 28" x 13" x 10"

TANZANIA

26" x 11" x 4"

41" x 13" x 10"

41" x 12" x 11"

TEKE (ANZIKA, BAKONO, BATEKE, M'TEKE,TEGE, TEO, TERE, TSIO)

Both Congo Republics and Gabon

The name of this people indicates its occupation—that is, trading—from teke, meaning “to buy.” The Teke settled in a territory lying across Republic of Congo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Gabon. During the 15th century they were integrated into the Tio kingdom, but attained independence in the 17th century. The basic social unit was the family, under the authority of the mfumu, or head of the family; the latter had the right of life and death over all family members and his prestige grew as their number grew – hence a tendency to own many slaves to increase one’s power and reputation. In terms of spiritual life, the mfumu mpugu, the village chief chosen as religious leader, was the most important personage; he kept the basket that contained the magic statuettes and the bones of the ancestors. The Teke often chose a blacksmith as chief – an important person in the community whose profession was passed down from father to son. The diviner, both sorcerer and healer, was also powerful; facilitating retributions, he would render effective the mussassi, personal protective statuettes, and would perform divination in instances of illness or death. The economy of the Teke is mainly based on farming maize, millet and tobacco, but the Teke are also hunters, skilled fishermen and traders. They believe in a supreme being, the creator of the universe called Nzambi, whose favors can be obtained with the help of tutelary spirits. 

Teke artists carved fetish figures. Three elements are characteristic: a variety of headdresses, the presence of fine parallel scarifications on the cheeks, and the addition of fetish materials bonga either in an abdominal cavity or in a body-enveloping sack from which the head and feet protrude. Each figure has its own specific purpose not related directly to its appearance. For example, when a figure is carved for a newborn child, part of the placenta is placed in the stomach cavity of the figure while the rest is buried inside the father's hut (where the family's fetish figures are kept). The figure serves to protect the child until puberty. Figures of identical appearance serve also for success in hunting, trading, and other activities, each figure's purpose being known only to the owner. These figures protect and assist the Teke and, if a fetish figure successfully demonstrates its power, its owner may detach bonga, break it into several pieces and insert fragments into other figures. He will then sell new figures to neighboring families, leaving the original statue with an emaciated body. The statues with bonga are called butti; without bonga they are called tege. Often the magical substance is placed all around the body with a cloth. The arms and hands are often highly conventionalized, carved in right angles at the elbows and shoulders, or missing altogether. The bonga is composed of various materials, but one of the main ingredients is whitish clay or chalk, which, for the Teke, represents the bones of their ancestor, thus conveying protective power. Often it is mixed with the nail clippings or the hair of a venerated person, with leaves of specific plants, various parts of snakes or leopards, etc. There are also statues with two faces and double legs; statues without the cavity, called nkiba; sitting figures with cavities.

The Teke used the moon-shaped masks -- flat, decorated with abstract geometric motifs, bisected by a horizontal stripe, colored with white or red earth, painted black, blue, and brown. They portray an abstractly interpreted human face. At the same time, the design is a composition of symbols. Teke masks are worn by members of the kidumu society either during the funerals of chiefs, or weddings, or important meetings.      

Teke (Anzika, Bakono, Bateke, M’Teke, Tege, Teo, Tere, Tsio,), both Congo republics and Gabon

Butti statue. The Teke inhabit the Stenley Pool area, in both Congo republics and also in Gabon. They are farmers and hunters and live in an area of plateaus covered by savannah, in villages grouped under a district chief. The Teke believed in a supreme being, the creator of the universe, called Nzami or Nziam, but their only cult was an ancestor cult. The power of this statue was in a magical substance (bonga) contained in the hole made in the body. Typical is the presence of fine parallel scarification marks on the cheeks. The butti representing ancestors are believed to bring success in hunting or trading and to protect against disease. The healing power of a butti is based on materials with supernatural qualities determined by the healer or diviner. The magic stuff may be earth and plant resin mixed with white chalk, small pieces of wood, hair, or other ingredients.

Materials: wood

Size: 14" x 6" x 6"

Teke (Anzika, Bakono, Bateke, M’Teke, Tege, Teo, Tere, Tsio,), both Congo republics and Gabon

Ceremonial Tsaayi mask. The name of the ethnic group indicates its occupation – that is, trading – from teke meaning “to buy.” The Teke inhabit the Stenley Pool area, in both Congo republics, which is an area of plateaus covered by savannah, in villages grouped under a district chief. They are farmers and hunters. The Teke believed in a supreme being, the creator of the universe, called Nziam, but their only cult was an ancestor cult. This shield like mask is one of the most amazing masks in the whole of African art, with highly abstract polychrome patterns. The facial features, eyes, nose, and mouth, are only minor elements in a decorative whole accentuated by polychrome. At the same time the design is a composition of symbols. The Teke masquerade dances originally served to confirm and maintain the social and political structure in a ceremonial context. With the onset of French colonial rule this tradition began to go into decline, and it was not until the countries gained independence that it was partly revived.

Material:  wood
Size: 21" x 19" x 3"

Teke (Anzika, Bakono, Bateke, M’Teke, Tege, Teo, Tere, Tsio,), both Congo republics and Gabon

Butti statue. The Teke inhabit the Stenley Pool area, in both Congo republics. They are farmers and hunters and live in an area of plateaus covered by savannah, in villages grouped under a district chief. The Teke believed in a supreme being, the creator of the universe, called Nzami or Nziam, but their only cult was an ancestor cult. The power of this statue is in a magical substance (bonga) contained in the sack surrounding the body from which the head and feet protrude. Typical is the presence of fine parallel scarification marks on the cheeks. The butti is believed to bring success in hunting or trading and to protect against disease. The magic stuff may be earth and plant resin mixed with white chalk, small pieces of wood, hair, or other ingredients.

Materials: wood, textile, feathers

Size: 

TOMA
Liberia, Guinea and Liberia

Settled in the northwest of Liberia, western Sierra Leone, and eastern Guinea, the 200,000 Toma live in the high-altitude rain forest. They organized their political and religious life around the poro association. This society was, among other things, responsible for the initiation of young boys that took place in the forest, which is particularly dense in the land of the Toma. When called forth by the landai (landa), a large mask, the future initiates would leave “on retreat” for the forest for a month. The landai, a horizontal unusually free, abstract wooden mask, has the mouth of a crocodile on which human features have been sculpted: a straight nose underneath arched eyebrows. The jaw is sometimes articulated, sometimes depicted by a horizontal line that creates a second volume perpendicular to the first. The top is surmounted by a headdress of feathers and the wearer looks through the snout. The largest known landai mask was 1.82 m in height. Its frightening image represented the major forest spirit which made manifest the power of poro; one of its duties was symbolically to devour boys at the end of their initiation period in order to give them rebirth as men. Only men wore these masks, which were fitted over the wearer's head horizontally.

The bakrogui, more common and less secret than the landai, are smaller masks that come in couples. The mask consists of a vertical panel upon which human features have been inscribed, a bulging nose and forehead, a beard, and tubular eyes or eyes heightened by metal disks. This mask may be seen only by members of the poro. Each mask may be thought of as the spiritual dwelling of an ancestor.

Figures also exist and are kept within each household. They have facial feature similar to landai masks.

Toma. Maternity sculprue of mother and twins.

Toma (Loma, Lorma), Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea

Nyangbai or bakrogui mask. Settled in the northwest of Liberia, western Sierra Leone, and eastern Guinea, the 200,000 Toma live in the high-altitude rain forest. Their most notable sculptural forms were wooden masks that combined human and animal features. This mask presents the wife of the great forest spirit. It is worn directly over the male wearer’s face. The upper part exhibits simplified (cattle or antelope) horn shapes and a rounded forehead. Usually such female partners to big male masks help out at periods of initiation and make an appearance only at important funerals or crisis.

Toma Crest.

Toma Mask

28" x 12" x" 1"

23" x 10" x 3"

13" x 6" x 6" Janus faces

23" x 10" x 3"

TUAREG
Algeria, Tunisia, Mali, Libya, Burkina Faso and Niger 

Tuareg, Niger

Cushion support (ehel). Among the Tuaregs of Nigerelegantly sculpted cushion supports are important items of any well-appointed household. They were carved by members of the guild known as Enaden, literally meaning ‘the other’, blacksmiths who have been instrumental in the creation of precisely those things that distinguished the upper classes of this society from the many vassal populations of the Tuareg world. The products of the Enaden are among the most potent of hegemonic symbols – for in sitting reclining upon the pillows and ehel, Tuareg nobles literally sit and lean upon these artists, dramatically re-enacting the historical relationship between themselves and the members of this guild. Tuareg sitting in his tent is to witness the fullness of his authority and to realize that he is filled with a sense of personal superiority that cannot be wrested from him.

Material: wood

Size:54" x 6.5"

Tusyan (Toussian, Tusia, Tusian, Win)
Burkina Faso

 The Tusyan, a small ethnic group in southwestern Burkina Faso are known especially for large, rectangular masks (loniaken) with figurative depiction of buffalo horns or bird’s head on the upper edge. These elements symbolize the totem animal of the clan to which the mask’s owner belongs. These masks were part of the Do or Lo cult into which all adolescents were initiated. In present case the mask is topped with two bird’s heads, representing the grey hornbill. During biannual ceremonies which were a precondition for marriage, the boys were given new, secret names associated with birds or wild animals. About every forty years, a great initiation rite was held in which those already initiated took part. Such masks were used exclusively at these great initiation rites.

Material:  wood, red Abrus precatorius seeds

Size:  31" x 21" x 3"

UNATTRIBUTED

38" x 17" x 4"

Hemba? Kusu? Luba?

9" x 3" x 4"

12" x 8" x 3"

10 x 6" x 2" not Ashanti

16" x 6" x 5" not Ashanti

Possibly, Baule or Guro????

18" x 11" x 7" (no raffia on the mask)

18" x 12" x 8"

WOYO Woyo (Bahoyo, Bawoyo, Ngoyo)
Democratic Republic of the Congo and Angola's Cabinda Province
 

A small tribe located both in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and in Cabinda  (province of Angola), the Woyo live on the Atlantic Ocean coast, north of the estuary of the Zaire River. As early as the late fifteenth century, their ancient kingdom was known to Europeans as that of the Ngoyo.

Living along the coast allows the Woyo to depend on the sea for much of their food. Men fish in the ocean, collect coconuts, and make palm wine. They also practice some hunting and do most of their own smithing. Women also fish, mostly in local ponds. They contribute significantly to the local economy, farming corn, manioc, bananas, beans, and pineapple. Surplus food is often traded to inland neighbors for profit under the supervision of local lineage heads from individual villages.

The Woyo possess a form of writing that has not yet been studied. A special application of this writing occurs in their “proverb covers,” the lids of their realistically carved wooden “storied pots,” which serve as an ingenious means of communication between husband and wife.  Woyo sculpture shows the influence of their Kongo neighbors, while remaining stylistically distinct. Numerous types of figural sculptures, which are used in religious ceremonies, are carved from wood. Their sculpture includes masks of the ndunga, a male society whose dances mark particular occasions including installations of tribal elders, funerals, celebrations, or the presence of great danger. The ndunga masks of the Woyo are characterized by their large size. These masks are worn with proportionately voluminous costumes of dried banana leaves that fully cover the dancers’ body. As a general rule, the masks are polychrome; however, some are painted primarily white. Believed to have symbolic meaning, the color is related to the concept of the masks’ power and is sometimes renewed. Their statues often adorned with magical objects called nkissi, have a triangular-shaped jaw and enlarged eyes.  

Woyo (Bahoyo, Bawoyo, Ngoyo), Democratic Republic of the Congo and Cabinda

Ndunga dance mask. The small Woyo people live on the Atlantic Ocean coast, north of the estuary of the Zaire River. The Woyo possess a form of writing that has not yet been studied. A special application of this writing occurs in their “proverb covers,” the lids of their realistically carved wooden “storied pots.” Woyo sculpture shows the influence of their Kongo neighbors, while remaining stylistically distinct. Their sculpture includes masks of the ndunga, a male society whose dances mark particular occasions including installations of tribal elders, funerals, celebrations, or the presence of great danger. These masks are worn with voluminous costumes of dried banana leaves that fully cover the dancers’ body. As a general rule, the masks are polychrome.

Material:  wood
Size: 22" x 12" x 2"

Ndunga dance mask. The small Woyo people live on the Atlantic Ocean coast, north of the estuary of the Zaire River. The Woyo possess a form of writing that has not yet been studied. A special application of this writing occurs in their “proverb covers,” the lids of their realistically carved wooden “storied pots.” Their sculpture includes masks of the ndunga, a male society whose dances mark particular occasions including installations of tribal elders, funerals, celebrations, or the presence of great danger. They are also agents of social control that operate like secret police. These masks are worn with voluminous costumes of dried banana leaves that fully cover the dancers’ body. As a general rule, the masks are polychrome. The open mouth reveals a decoratively filed incisor.

YAKA
Democratic Republic of the Congo

The Kwango River area (southwest of the Democratic Republic of the Congo) is the home of some 300,000 highly artistic Yaka people. Yaka or yakala means “males,” “the strong ones,” thus Bayaka, “the strong people.” The Yaka society is organized into strong lineage group headed by elders and lineage headmen. The chief of the lineage had the power of life and death over lineage members. He was in charge of the cult of the ancestors and judiciary authority, and it was compulsory that he have large number of descendants. Chiefs, including dependent village chiefs, regional overlords, and paramount chiefs, are believed to have extra-human abilities, ruling the underworld or spiritual realm as well as the ordinary world. A chief participates in the affairs of witches so that he can tap their power for the good of the community. On the periphery of the hierarchy, the “master of the earth” plays an important role during the rites that accompany the hunt – the primary activity of the men. The Yaka hunters perform a specific ritual under the direction of the “master of the earth” to guarantee that they procure game. The Yaka have an initiation, the n-khanda. A special hut is built in the forest to give shelter to the postulants during their retreat; the event ends in circumcision, an occasion for great masked festivities including dances and songs. The n-khanda is organized every time there are enough eligible youths between ten and fifteen years of age.

The arts of the Yaka people are very much alive today. The statues that contain magic ingredients, the biteki (nkisi), are multi-functional and sometimes have contradictory roles, for example, they were used to heal and to cause illness. The medications are placed in the figure’s abdomen, which is closed up with a resin stopper, or enclosed in small bags hung around the neck or waist. All nkisi figures are manipulated by a diviner to activate a force which can either inflict illness or protect one’s clan from illness or harm, depending upon the particular set of circumstances. The diviner has an important position in Yaka society because he owns and activates powerful objects, including some masks, that can protect or harm.

The Yaka also have statues of chiefs which are not, however, portraits. These emphasize his authority by representing the chief, his many wives, his children, and his servants, gather together in the same shelter.  Large, life-size carved figures stand at the entrances of Yaka initiation huts, the inside walls of which are covered with painted bark panels. The torso is highly developed; missing extremities allude to an accident that befell a hero.  The phuungu, a statuette of some 6” belongs to the chief of the patrilinear lineage. The torso is wrapped in magic ingredients and has an almost spherical shape; often hooked onto the roof of the hut, it receives libations of blood that activate its power.

The masks are commonly used. The eastern Yaka mask is called kakunga (“the chief”) and is considered one of the important masks in the circumcision ceremony. Other Yaka masks are widely varied in style, although most of them are polychrome. The nkisi masks have a long, exaggerated upward-hooked nose, open mouth. Many masks and figures are remarkable by the turned-up nose. This is a strange but common detail, and there is no decisive explanation for this nose. One source supposes that it is an allusion to the elephant's trunk. A long handle under the chin was held by the dancer. The mask is generally surmounted by a richly ornamented, abstract construction – sometimes resembling a Thailand pagoda; sometimes in animal shapes, made of twigs, covered with fiber cloth, and finally painted.  A variant is the broad-nosed polychrome mask, with round, protruding eyes and square, block-like ears. These two types of masks were used in initiation ceremonies of the mukanda or nkanda societies. At the conclusion of the initiation, the masks were held in front of the faces of the dancers. There are also animal masks. The masks fulfill several functions: some serve as protection against evil forces, others ensure the fertility of the young initiate. Their role consists in frightening the public, healing the sick, and casting spells. The kholuka mask dances alone at the end of celebrations. Very popular, featuring globular or tubular eyes, a protuberant or snub nose, and an open mouth showing its teeth, it sometimes has a hairdo of branches covered with raffia. All refer to the power of the elders and their predecessors, and every element of the mask is the plastic translation of a cosmological term. The colors are those of the rites of passage; the serpent motif symbolizes the rainbow and the moon.  After undergoing various trials in more or less secret camps, the initiates appear in the village, dancing and wearing masks prepared for this purpose.

The Yaka use a narrow cylindrical wooden slit-drum with a carved head for divination purposes. Sometimes the head is Janus form. This instrument, the main insignia of the diviner, is the focus of a complex system of ritual institutions concerned with hereditary curses and curing. The slit-drum functions in a variety of contexts.  It is used as a container for preparing and serving divinatory medicines, but it is also beaten at the funeral of a diviner.

The Yaka give an aesthetic touch to many everyday objects such as stools, combs, pipes, headrests, and musical instruments.

Yaka (Bayaka), Democratic Republic of the Congo

Ceremonial njila figurine. The arts of the Yaka are very much alive today. Ceremonial masks and figures are the work of a sculptor who carries out his art well away from the view of other villagers. The Yaka have an initiation, the n-khanda. A special hut is built in the forest to give shelter to the postulants during their retreat; the event ends in circumcision, an occasion for great masked festivities including dances and song. The n-khanda is organized every time there are enough eligible youths between ten and fifteen years of age. The njila figurine represents a mythological bird. Placed in the interior of the house, it protects against witches and other enemies that might cause affliction. It is  also placed in sleeping quarters where it functions as a protective charm with strong fertility connotations. Besides, it is used in some initiation ceremonies, and may also appear as mask. Its specific function in the initiation is not clear.

Material: wood, raffia
Size:  17" x 8" x 6"

Yaka (Bayaka), Democratic Republic of the Congo

The chest. Yaka artistic tradition is rich and various, but much of it has been informed by their neighbors – the Suku, the Kongo, the Holo and the Teke. The beautifully carved chests of this kind have been used by diviners. This piece is decorated by mythical subjects.

Material: wood

Size:  38" x 17" x 12"

Yaka (Bayaka), Democratic Republic of the Congo

The chest. The Yaka migrated from Angola during the 16^th century and settled under the control of the Kongo kingdom. In the 18^th century their lands were annexed by the Lunda people, but by the 19^th century the Yaka had regained their independence. Yaka society is tightly structured and headed by a chief of Lunda origin, who delegates responsibilities to ministers and lineage chiefs. The chests of this kind have been used by diviners. This beautifully carved piece is decorated by mythical subjects. Its specific purpose is unknown.

Material: wood

Size:  46" x 12" x 12"

Yaka (Bayaka), Democratic Republic of the Congo

Mbwoolo protective figurine. Yaka means “males,” “the strong ones,” thus Bayaka, “the strong people.” The Yaka number about 300,000. They settled along the middle Kwango River  and along the Wamba River, in the southwest of the country. The tribe lives principally from hunting, although subsidiary farming is undertaken by the women. They cultivate manioc, yams, peas, pineapples and peanuts. Young men are expected to pass through various initiation stages, including circumcision. Highly artistic people, the Yaka give an aesthetic touch to many everyday objects such as combs, pipes, musical instruments. This figurine represents one of the Yaka tribe’s most widespread sculptural categories. Its function is to protect people against evils. Typical are the hands touching the chin, squatting posture, and protruding ears.

Material:  wood

Size:  18" x 6" x 6"

Yaka (Bayaka) or Suku, Democratic Republic of the Congo

Ceremonial kopa cup. The cups of this type are supposed to have been used in marriage ceremonies, the bride drinking palm wine from one side and the bridegroom from the other to seal their union. Another source relates them to prestige objects connected with leadership. The kopa was formerly one of the symbols of office presented to a new chief or lineage headman upon his investiture. No one else could touch it without proper authority. At the owner’s death, a kopa was presented to his successor.

13" x 8" x 5"

Yaka (Bayaka), Democratic Republic of the Congo

Ceremonial kopa cup. The cups of this type are supposed to have been used in marriage ceremonies, the bride drinking palm wine from one side and the bridegroom from the other to seal their union. Another source relates them to prestige objects connected with leadership. The kopa was formerly one of the symbols of office presented to a new chief or lineage headman upon his investiture. No one else could touch it without proper authority. At the owner’s death, a kopa was presented to his successor.

Material: wood

Size: 8" x 3" x 3"

Yaka (Bayaka), Democratic Republic of  the Congo

Statue of the Chief. The Kwango River area (southwest of the Democratic Republic of the Congo) is the home of the Yaka and Suku, highly artistic peoples. Their institutions, political organization, and cultural traditions are almost identical; they can be differentiated only by the style of their statuary. The arts of the Yaka numbering about 300,000 are very much alive today. The Yaka have statues of chiefs which are not, however, portraits. This statue by its composition is very close to the Yaka statue exhibited in the Museé Royal de l’Afrique Centrale in Tervuren, Belgium. Its meaning is not known.

Material: wood
Size: 21" x 5" x 5" 

Yaka (Bayaka), Democratic Republic of the Congo

Ceremonial kopa cup. The cups of this type are supposed to have been used in marriage ceremonies, the bride drinking palm wine from one side and the bridegroom from the other to seal their union. Another source relates them to prestige objects connected with leadership. The kopa was formerly one of the symbols of office presented to a new chief or lineage headman upon his investiture. No one else could touch it without proper authority. At the owner’s death, a kopa was presented to his successor.

Material: wood
Size: 3" x 6" x 4"

Mbwoolo protective figure. Yaka means “the strong ones," “ba” means people, thus Bayaka means ”the strong people.” Settled along the length of the middle Kwango River, in the southwest of the country, they number about 300,000.  The men traditionally practiced hunting, while the women cultivated manioc, yams, peas, pineapples and peanuts. They practice initiation and circumcision. Highly artistic people, the Yaka give an aesthetic touch to many everyday objects such as combs, pipes, musical instruments. The figure represents one of the Yaka tribe’s most widespread sculptural categories. Typical are the hands touching the chin. Its function is to protect people against evils.

Material:  wood

Size: 12" x 5" x 5"

Yaka (Bayaka), Democratic Republic of the Congo

Yaka kholuka ceremonial mask. Established in the southwest of DRC, the Yaka number some 300,000 individuals. The men traditionally practiced hunting, while the women cultivated manioc, yams, peas, pineapples and peanuts. The masks are the work of a sculptor who carries out his art well away from the initiation enclosure, also separated from the view of other villagers. The sculptural composition of this mask is typical of Yaka works. The face features are painted with bright colors on white background. The ensemble is framed by the sizeable mass of a coiffure in raffia fiber, this surmounted by a hat made from armature of vegetable fiber and covered with a resin-coated tissue. The kholuka mask which is very popular among the Yaka dances alone at the end of celebrations. The whole mask refers to the power of the elders and their predecessors, and every element of the mask is the plastic translation of a cosmological term. Generally such masks were used only once. 
 

Material:  wood, raffia, tissue

Size: 20" x 12" x 13" (30 w raffia)

12" x 5" x 5"

YORUBA
Nigeria, Republic of Benin and Togo

The Yoruba people, numbering over 12 million, are the largest nation in Africa with an art-producing tradition. Most of them live in southwest Nigeria, with considerable communities further west in the Republic of Benin and in Togo. They are divided into approximately twenty separate subgroups, which were traditionally autonomous kingdoms. Excavation at Ife of life-sized bronze and terracotta heads and full-length figures of royalty and their attendants have startled the world, surpassing in their portrait-like naturalism everything previously known from Africa. The cultural and artistic roots of the Ife masters of the Classical Period (ca. 1050—1500) lie in the more ancient cultural center of Nok to the northeast, though the precise nature of this link remains obscure.

Now two-third of the Yoruba are farmers. Even if they live in the city, they keep a hut close to the fields; they grow corn, beans, cassava, yams, peanuts, coffee, and bananas. It is they who control the markets -- along with the merchants and artisans: blacksmiths, copper workers, embroiderers, and wood sculptors, trades handed down from generation to generation.

The Yoruba gods form a true pantheon; the creator god, Olodumare, reigns over almost four hundred orisha (deities) and nature spirits who live among the rocks, trees, and rivers. Their figures, more often of Shango (also spelled Sango and Sagoe), deity of thunder and lightning are carved from wood and kept in shrines. Sculptors have studios in which apprentices learn the techniques of the master and his stylistic preferences. Throughout Yorubaland, human figures are represented in a fundamentally naturalistic way, except for bulging eyes; flat, protruding, and usually parallel lips; and stylized ears. Within the basic canon of Yoruba sculpture, many local styles can be distinguished, down to the hand of the individual artist. Today, Nigeria is structured by a number of cults. The Gelede cult pays homage to the power of elderly women. During Gelede festivities, helmet masks carved in the form of a human face are worn. On top of the head there is either an elaborate coiffure or a carved representation of a human activity. The masks of the Epa cult, which is connected with both the ancestors and agriculture, vary enormously according to the town in which they appear. The mask proper, roughly globular, has highly stylized features that vary little; but the superstructure, which may be four feet or more in height, is often of very great complexity. Generally, they are worn during funerals or rites of passage ceremonies and characteristically they are composed of many elements – usually a human-face helmet mask topped by an elaborate standing figure. When not worn, these masks are kept in shrines where they are honored with libations and prayers. The Ogboni society brass figures, called Edan, are cast in pairs and attached to spikes and a chain runs from head to head to join the pair. They are worn over the shoulders of Ogboni members as sign of office or as an amulet. Large brass figures, called onile, are carved as a pair and represent the male and female aspects of Ile, the earth Goddess. A variety of palm nut containers used for divination are made with caryatides depicting women. Societies and cults still hold celebrations today during the many masked festivities in which costumes of fiber or fabric, masks, music, and dance form one interlocking whole. The most widely distributed cult is of twins, ibeji, whose birth among the Yoruba is unusually frequent. An ibeji statuette is to be made, if one twin died; this ibeji remained with the surviving twin and was treated, fed, and washed as a living child. Their effigies, made on the instructions of the oracle, are among the most numerous of all classes of African sculpture. The equestrian figure is a common theme in Yoruba wood sculpture.  It reflects the importance of the cavalry in the campaigns of the kings who created the Oyo Empire as early as the sixteenth through the eighteenth centuries. Only Yoruba chiefs and their personal retainers were privileged to use the horse. Nevertheless, the rider and the horse remained an important social symbol and offered an exciting subject for artistic imagination and skill. The diminutive animal and the dwarfish legs of the horseman are typical for this type of figures. Carved doors and house posts are found in shrines and palaces and in the houses of important men. Fulfilling purely secular functions are bowls for kola nuts, offered in welcoming a guest; ayo boards for the game, known also as wari, played with seeds or pebbles in two rows of cuplike depressions; and stools, spoons, combs, and heddle pulleys. Additional important arts include pottery, weaving, beadworking and metalsmithing.  

Yoruba (Yorba, Yorouba), Nigeria, Benin and Togo

Ibeji (twins) statuettes.  The Yoruba people, numbering over 12 million, are the largest nation in Africa with an art-producing tradition. The ibeji statuette is a minor art form. The great frequency of twin births and the heightened infant mortality rate have found sculptural expression in the Yoruba territory through ibeji figurines. Sculpted at the sign of the diviner at the death of one or both twins, they are looked after and venerated by the mothers, who feed them, clothe them and ritually wash them because they are depositories of the spirits of the children. A lack of attention could provoke the ire of the spirits and bring disastrous results. Thus the ibeji are Yoruba memorials to twins who have died. Twins are believed to be the children of Shango, the god of thunder and lightning. They are also thought to possess supernatural powers and share the same soul.

Material:  wood, vegetable fiber
Size: 9" x 4" x 3"  &  8" x 3" x 4"

Yoruba (Yorba, Yorouba), Nigeria, Benin and Togo.

Statue

Yoruba (Yorba, Yorouba), Nigeria, Benin and Togo

Ibeji (twin) female statuette.  The Yoruba people, numbering over 12 million, are the largest nation in Africa with an art-producing tradition. The ibeji statuette is a minor art form. Societies and cults still hold celebrations today during the many masked festivities in which costumes of fiber or fabric, masks, music, and dance form one interlocking whole. The most widely distributed cult is of twins, ibeji, whose birth among the Yoruba is unusually frequent. An ibeji statuette is to be made, if one twin died; this ibeji remained with the surviving twin and was treated, fed, and washed as a living child. Their effigies, made on the instructions of the oracle, are among the most numerous of all classes of African sculpture. A lack of attention could provoke the ire of the spirits and bring disastrous results. Thus the ibeji are Yoruba memorials to twins who have died. Twins are believed to be the children of Shango, the god of thunder and lightning. They are also thought to possess supernatural powers and share the same soul.

Material:  wood, tissue, beads

Yoruba (Yorba, Yorouba), Nigeria, Benin and Togo

The Yoruba people, numbering over 12 million, are the largest nation in Africa with an art-producing tradition. Most of them live in southwest Nigeria, with considerable communities further west in the Republic of Benin and in Togo, in an area of forest and savannah. They are divided into approximately twenty separate subgroups, which were traditionally autonomous kingdoms. Now two-third of the Yoruba are farmers. Even if they live in the city, they keep a hut close to the fields; they grow corn, beans, cassava, yams, peanuts, coffee, and bananas. It is they who control the markets -- along with the merchants and artisans: blacksmiths, copper workers, embroiderers, and wood sculptors, trades handed down from generation to generation. Olumeye means “one who knows honor” and some Yoruba carvers referred to the female figure as “a messenger of the spirit” who carries cola and cakes in an offering bowl. Carvings of this type were used in the reception room of the palace to hold kola nuts, which were given to the guests as an act of hospitality and for their refreshment. The hornbills on the top of bowl are symbols of fecundity.

Material: wood
Size: 27" x 10" x 17

Yoruba (Yorba, Yorouba), Nigeria, Benin and Togo

Gelede Mask.  The Gelede cult pays homage to the power of elderly women who ensure the fertility and well-being of the community, but who are also held responsible for human barrenness and death. The mask festivals called Efe/Gelede are celebrated among the subgroups of the southwestern Yorubaland. It is usually held between March and May, when the rains arrive and a new agricultural cycle begins. The masquerades, songs, and dances are in honor of “our mothers,” whose power is especially manifest in elderly women, female ancestors, and female orisha (goddesses). Through song, dance, and costume, the underlying truth of the power and authority of woman in a male-oriented society is acknowledged. During Gelede festivities, the masks of this type carved in the form of a human face are worn.  

Material: wood
 

11" x 9" x 7"

Yoruba (Yorba, Yorouba), Nigeria, Benin and Togo

Epa mask. The epa cult is connected with the ancestors and agriculture. The epa masks have highly stylized features that vary little; but the superstructure, which may be four feet or more in height, is often of very great complexity. In the concluding ritual of the epa festival, the excitement and expectation of the participants mount as the last of the great masks appear from the forest to dance among the townspeople and receive the great homage of the chiefs and elders of the community. This mask is imaging the beauty and power of woman. The mask comes from the forest with measured pace and great dignity. She is referred to as “the leader” of all the women of the community. As she dances gracefully the masker receives and acknowledges the praises of the people, especially those of the women, who call for her blessing and aid in bearing children. Epa masks remember “the great ones of the family who are now dead”.

Material: wood

Yoruba

YAURE 

(SNAN, YAOURE, YAURE)

Côte d'Ivoire

The 20,000 Yohure inhabit the central region of the Côte d’Ivoire, the territory between the White and Red Bandama Rivers, to the east of the city of Bouafle. The Yohure are geographically and linguistically situated between the Baule, an Akan language group to the east, and the Guro and Gban (Gagu), southern Mande-speaking peoples to the west. Depending upon their proximity to their neighbors, the inhabitants of Yohure villages are either entirely Baule or Mande speaking. Villages are generally associated with one clan. They are governed by a leader assisted by a council of elders who represent each family holding. Each family lineage traces his roots to a particular ancestor. Not only their language, but also the culture, religion and art are influenced by their powerful neighbors, the Baule and Guro. The Yohure possess a strong sense of identity and have evolved a refined art. The Yohure decorate different everyday objects with figurative representations, but first of all their beautiful masks reveal their artistic abilities.

Yohure (Snan, Yaoure, Yaure), Côte d’Ivoire

Cereminial je mask.  For the Yohure, the masks are representations of the yu spirits, intermediates between Bali, the supreme creator, and humankind. The majority of Yohure masks play a fundamental role in restoring order to a society deeply distressed by bereavement. Indeed, a death throws the village out of balance, and only the intervention of the yu spirit – by way of the masks – can counter. The present mask is a member of the je mask series of the men’s initiation association. The mask combines animal and human features in an emblematic evocation of one of the “spirit powers” of the bush which the Yohure call yu. As intermediaries between man and god (Bali), yu are sacrificed to during times of peril and when there is a threat to the social order. The je masks, as evocations of yu, are considered to be extremely powerful objects and very dangerous to touch outside their ritual context. Mythological sanction absolutely prohibits women from seeing the masks and from attending the funeral rites at which they appear.

Material:  wood
16" x 6" x 4"

Cereminial lo mask. The 20,000 Yohure inhabit the central region of the Côte d’Ivoire. For the Yohure, the masks are representations of the yu spirits, intermediates between Bali, the supreme creator, and humankind. The majority of Yohure masks play a fundamental role in restoring order to a society deeply distressed by bereavement. Indeed, a death throws the village out of balance and, moreover, is an indelible stain that only the intervention of the yu – by way of their lo masks – can counter. In order for the yu to be able to liberate their purifying powers, it is necessary for man to court their favor. The yu masks may be benevolent or, conversely, extremely dangerous; thus, it is necessary to appease them via sacrifices offered to their masks. The lo masks appear during funeral ceremonies. Women may not participate in funeral ceremonies, neither may they look at the masks, for fear that this encounter with death might jeopardize their fecundity. This means that before starting the village’s purification rituals related to a death, for prudence sake the women are gotten out of the way. In addition to this purifying function, the masks are also used to guide the deceased’s soul to the world of the dead, and to assure him the status of an ancestor protective of his descendants. This is of the utmost importance, for there is nothing as dangerous or disquieting as an errant soul loose in the village. The outline of the mask is characteristically surrounded by a serrated edge. The function of each type of mask is not rigidly fixed.

Material:  wood

Size:

23" x 8" x 4"

Yohure (Snan, Yaoure, Yaure), Côte d’Ivoire

Cereminial mask. The best known masks of the Yohure, a small ethnic group onhabiting the central region of Côte d’Ivoire, represent human faces supplemented by animal attributes. They belong to the Je or Lo types of masks that are difficult to distinguish from one another. With the aid of such masks, the people hope to influence supernatural powers, or yu, that can do harm for humans, but that can also ensure their welfare. The masks are considered emblems of yu, extremely dangerous, to be handled with extreme caution, and absolutely kept out of the sight of women. Cases of death that jeopardize the social order are the principal occasions for an appearance of masqueraders. By means of their dance, they restore the social equilibrium of the community and accompany the deceased into the ancestor realm.  

Material:  wood

24" x 11" x 7"

YOMBE

(BAYOMBE, MAJOMBE, MAYOMBE, MAJUMBA, MAYUMBE, YUMBE)

Both Congo Republics and Angola

Due to the thick forests surrounding Yombe territory the land must be cleared through slash and burn techniques before crops can be planted. The land is usually cleared by men, leaving the task of farming to the women. Plantains, manioc, maize, beans, peanuts, and yams are among the primary crops grown. These are primarily used for local consumption, but surplus is also sold in regional markets to obtain cash. Goats, pigs, chickens, and dogs are also raised. Fishing on the Congo (Zaire) river and its surrounding tributaries provides an important source of dietary protein. Men are also responsible for hunting, weaving, carving, smithing, and smelting. Women create clay pots for domestic use.

The forested region of the Lower Zaire River is important in the artistic history of black Africa, because it boasts the greatest concentration of maternity figures and stone statuary. The focal point is the vast Yombe area where numerous individual styles may be found. The Kongo kingdom influenced the Yombe who, at one point of their history, were an integral part of this kingdom. The 350,000 Yombe people are artistically prolific. They produced some of the finest sculpture in all Africa. Their statues contained the same themes as the Kongo's: maternity figures, seated kings, objects of prestige, and nail and mirror fetishes. The Yombe female phemba statues are used in divinatory practices or associated with fertility rites. Phemba figures represent women in seated, cross-legged, or kneeling poses with pointed or round coiffures, necklaces of glass or coral beads, a cord tied around the breasts, jewelry, and filed teeth. Women are an important Yombe symbol since they are considered to be not only a nurturing force, but also seers and guardians of the spirit. The maternity figures are carved of wood in a realistic style, rare in Africa. Mirror and nail fetishes have an aggressive expression characterized by an open mouth usually showing filed teeth. The rare realistic masks were worn during important communal ceremonies. The art of the royal court is manifested in objects of luxury such as commanders’ staffs, flyswats, scepters, swords, and musical instruments such as drums, trumpets and whistles. The mvuala scepter are ordinarily surmounted by refined female figures; sometimes they contain relics.            

Kongo (Bakongo, Bashikongo, Kakongo),  Angola and Democratic Republic of the Congo

Nail Fetish. Nail fetishes are a unique and important phenomenon of Kongo sculpture. In the Kongo, all these fetishes are called nkisi. Nkisi means “medicine”. Historically, there were two types of nkisi, public and private, with some having vital democratizing roles, as sources of empowerment for rural residents and individuals outside the court. In order to face certain trials (illness, conflict, sterility, sorcery, etc), the Kongo take recourse in this type of object. Inserting nails or pieces of metal into the nkisi to tie down an agreement or lawsuit is called bibaaku. It activates the figure to bring destruction to those who do not fulfill their end of the pact, oath, or treaty. Thus they attempt to resolve their problem, or to intimidate or punish the individual responsible for it. An nkisi is made by a sculptor who works together with a nganga (ritual expert). The sculptor carves a male figure. Next, the nganga completes the figure by placing the ingredients that have positive or negative power in an abdominal cavity made by the sculptor. These ingredients are ‘carriers’ for a variety of magical objects, which can be sand, roots or leaves, or other objects. Keeping track of the precise history of each insertion was the duty of the nganga. As one source says, the nkisi is “a hiding place for people’s souls, to keep and compose in order.

Material:  wood, nails, pieces of metal, vegetable fiber, raffia, cowrie
Size: 34" x 11" x 10"

ZANDE

ZANDE (ADYO, AZANDE, BADJO, BAZENDA, BSANDE, IDIO, NIAM-NIAM, ZANDEH)

Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan

The word azande means "the people who possess much land." This relates to their history as conquering warriors. The Zande migrated during the 18th century from Sudan to the northern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, settling on the banks of the Uele River. They live also in the Central African Republic and the Sudan. They occupy a region of savanna and forest and in common with the Mangbetu, Zande men hunt and fish while the women tend the fields. In political terms, this ethnic group of 750,000 people is ruled by a king with succession to the throne passing to his eldest son, while the younger ones govern the kingdom's provinces. The Zande have been ruled by different members of a single royal dynasty, the Avangara. Royal patronage was significant in the development and movement of art throughout this area. The political structure is counterbalanced by the mani secret association, created at the end of the 19^th century.

Zande sculptures represent ancestors or animal figures with simplified features and enlarged heads. The mani association celebrates the importance of woman and uses statuette called yanda. These statues are associated with the highest rank of the secret mani society. The figures protect society members from the dangers of illness, hunting, evil spirits, etc. Usually female figures are made from wood or fired clay; yanda figures often wear accessories, such as bead collars, pendants, and coins.  The society's chief would infuse the yanda with his power by blowing smoke on it and rubbing it with a paste. The pyramid-shaped head, simple in form, has a diamond-shaped face, protruding eyes, and, often, iron rings in its ears and nose. The torso and neck are cylindrical or rectangular, the extremities short. Its outlines are angular and abstract. In some northern Zande areas, large pole-like figures have been erected. These figures may have functioned as grave markers, a widespread pattern for eastern Africa and the southern Sudan. The maternity figures are also known, as are stylized and refined objects: neck-rests, flyswats, ivory horns, and musical instruments such as drums, sanzas, and curved harps decorated with a head and ending with a pair of legs. Masks are rare. 

Zande (Azande, Bsande, Niam-Niam) (?), Democratic Republic of Congo

Yanda protective statuette. The statuettes of this type are associated with the highest rank of the secret Mani society. Named for the society’s protective spirit, the figurine protects society members from the dangers of illness, hunting, evil spirits, etc. Usually they are female figurines made from wood or fired clay.

Material: wood.

Size: