Bell "kunda" ·  D. R. Congo, Bakongo · ID: 3038424

Description

wood, slightly shiny dark brown patina, hourglass-shaped with wooden clappers, carved with jagged patterns, three metal bells attached in the middle by a band of fabric resp. rubber, min. dam., missing parts through insect caused damage, slight traces of abrasion;
the “kunda” is linked to the “nkisi” cult (cult of spirits), which is combined with song and dance and the treatment of the ill. “Kunda” enables the “nganga” to influence the spirits and impose his will on them.

Comparing literature

Gansemans, Jos, Musical Instruments, Tervuren 2009, p. 143