Plant fibre mask "kalengula" ·  D. R. Congo, Luntu, Kasai region · ID: 3048514

Description

raffia, pigments, grass fibre, eyes and diadem-shaped headdress worked separately, base

A photo taken by the anthropologist Albert Maesen in a Luntu village in 1955 shows a masked dancer wearing a similar mask. In his field notes, Maesen states that this mask is called “kalengula” and is worn at initiation or funerals by members of the “bukalenga bwa nkashaama” brotherhood.

Only a few comparable examples of this type of plant fibre mask can be found. One object comes from the Mission Museum of the White Fathers in Ghent (AHDRC 0125719), a second is found in the holdings of the Royal Museum for Central Africa in Tervuren (AHDRC 0125720).

The object Plant fibre mask “kalengula” with the object ID 3048514 was last part of the auction 102nd Auction at April 13, 2024 on Zemanek-Münster Auction house. The object with the lot number 253 achieved a sales price of EUR 1,400.

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.

Comparing literature

Volper, Julien, Autour de Songye, Montreuil 2012, p. 199, fig. 28