Miniature mask "lukungu" ·  D. R. Congo, Lega · ID: 3035231

Description

ivory, honey brown patina, flatted chin and forehead area, circular decorations, drilled hole on each side, min. dam., slight traces of abrasion;
“lukungu” masks belong to members of “bwami”- society who already have reached the highest rank of kindi. “Lukungu” means “skull” and should be a hint that the mask is thought to remind of deceased “kindi” members. At initiation ceremonies they were oiled and then displayed on a kind of fence or attached to bigger “muminia” or “idimu” masks.

Comparing literature

Biebuyck, Daniel P., Lega, Brussels 2002, p. 93, ill. 37