Anthropomorphic mask "mbuya" ·  D. R. Congo, Pende · ID: 3052572

Description

wood, pigments, raffia, base

The Pende use dance masks “mbuya”, which appear during non-ritual festivities to entertain the village community.

The mask figures represent different characters and role models of Pende society. There are embodiments of chiefs (“fumu”), wise old men with long beards (“giwoyo” or “muyombo”), executioners (“pumbu”), fortune tellers (“nganga ngombo”) and bewitched persons “mbangu”, up to representations of clowns “tundu” and prostitutes “ngobo”.

The object Anthropomorphic mask “mbuya” with the object ID 3052572 was last part of the auction Auction 105 at November 15, 2025 on Zemanek-Münster Auction house. The object with the lot number 370 achieved a sales price of EUR 2,000.

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.