Fragment of an ancestor figure
Pierre Dartevelle, Brussels, Belgium
Description
wood, greyish brown patina with remains of dark brown paint, the compact trunk enclosed by clamp-like arranged arms, crowned by an angular face with voluminous coiffure and plug in the parting, the body below the hips missing, destroyed by insects, sacrificial traces, slightly dam., cracks (above all on both sides of the body), block-like base;
figures of the Basikasingo often represent individual ancestors, called “bashumbu”. They were kept in special shrines under the authority and guardianship of a dominant lineage elder. The eastern Congo region near Lake Tanganyika, as in many parts of Africa, has seen centuries of migration, trade and cultural assimilation. Mainly Luba-Hemba influence from the south is therefore reflected in wooden figures attributed to the Basikasingo.