Power half figure "nkisi" ·  D. R. Congo, Songye · ID: 3039057

Description

wood, arm- and legless cylindrical corpus with light patina, which implies that this area was originally covered by cloth, head and shoulder area coated with rich reddish brown patina and traces of black paint, drilled holes from inserted nails on the face, animal horn on the parting, slightly dam., cracks, base;
small “mankisi” belong to individuals or at the most a family and serve for the fullfillment of personal interests. The majority of personal “mankisi” were discarded soon after their production, for once the desired effect was attained, the empowering substances lost their efficacy.