Mask "idimu" of the "bwami" society · D. R. Congo, Lega · ID: 3046744
Hermann Kühn, Munich, Germany (1999)
German Private Collection
Description
wood, kaolin,
“Idimu” masks only appeared during initiation of the two higher grades, “lutumbu lwa yananio” and “lutumbo lwa kindi”. During the rituals, both might be exhibited on a little hurdle “pala”, surrounded by “lukungu” masks in ivory or bone.
All masks of the Lega are used as didactic supports during the dances, songs and narrated proverbs that transmit the Lega code of ideal conduct to the new initiates.
The object Mask “idimu” of the “bwami” society with the object ID 3046744 was part of the auction 95th Tribal Art Auction on October 24, 2020. The object with the lot number 263 achieved a sales price of EUR 4,000 with an asking 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.