Anthropomorphic mask "lukwakongo" ·  D. R. Congo, Lega · ID: 3049780

Description

wood, kaolin, pokerwork,

A mask by the same artist from the Josef Herman Collection was auctioned as lot 316 at Christie’s Amsterdam on 12 December 2000 (AHDRC 0027077).

Young men received the “lukwakongo” masks during the “yananio” rites. These masks were the most important insignia of rank until the owner moved to the higher level of “kindi” and trades his wooden mask for an ivory one, called “lukungu”.

The object Anthropomorphic mask “lukwakongo” with the object ID 3049780 was last part of the auction Sale 100 at April 15, 2023 on Zemanek-Münster Auction house. The object with the lot number 75 achieved a sales price of EUR 3,000.

You can find more Masks and other popular object types on our related topic pages. You may also be interested in our page on African art.

Comparing literature

Cameron, Elisabeth L., Art of the Lega, Los Angeles 2001, p. 184 ff.