Helmet mask "kalunga" · D. R. Congo, Bembe · ID: 3033135
sold
EUR 2,500
Provenance
Udo Horstmann, Zug, SwitzerlandHarald und Ursula Suhr, Victoria, Britisch Columbia, Canada / Germany (1985)
Size
H: 41,5 cm
H: 16.3 inch
Description
light brown wood, polychrome paint, carved with two pair of eyes with cross-shaped pupils, min. dam., minor missing parts, traces of abrasion, fissures, on metal base;
the mask symbolizes “kalunga”, a Bembe society that functions as mother society and intervenes in tribal disputes; the society also decides tribal positions toward outside interventions. Today this mask is used in various celebrations. It supports a large, complex array of plumes and is worn with a costume that completely covers the dancer.
Comparing literature
Cornet, Joseph, A survey of Zairan Art, The Bronson Collection, Raleigh 1978, p. 350 f.