Anthropomorphic peg ·  D. R. Congo, Lega · ID: 3038469

Description

ivory, honey brown patina, of slightly bent form, surmounted by a human head with characteristic facial features, min. dam., cracks through age, slight traces of abrasion;
pegs made of elephant bone represent the elephant’s ribs, and they also remind the viewer of the multiple meanings that “bwami” assigns to the elephant. The image of the dead elephant, decomposed so that its ribs are exposed, is evoked in the saying “Where elephant rots, there are many ribs.” The saying, combined with the pegs, refers to the material possessions of high-level “bwami” member that are distributed at death.

Comparing literature

Cameron, Elisabeth L., Art of the Lega, Los Angeles 2001, p. 95, ill. 6.26