Seated figure

Description

light wood, middle brown patina, black paint, the head resting on the left hand, with the right hand holds a bottle, min. dam., small missing parts through insect caused damage, cracks, traces of abrasion;
the inclination towards realism oriented the Bakongo towards portraiture. Funerary likenesses constitute the principal expression of this taste, and a tomb is often marked by an effigy of the deceased. These statues are most often executed in stone, but portraits in wood have not entirely disappeared. The man is portrayed holding a bottle of alcohol. Alcohol was one of the major articles of trade and consumption, and was considered a privilege of the rich.