Small standing male figure "mukuya" · D. R. Congo, Bembe · ID: 3037702

Name: Small standing male figure "mukuya"
SKU: 3037702
Price: 3400 EUR
Availability: SoldOut

sold EUR 3,400

Provenance

Lemaire, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Size

H: 15 cm

H: 5.9 inch

Description

wood, brown patina, blackened in parts, holding a horn with the left and a ceremonial knife with the right hand, eyes with white porcelain inlay, typical body scarifications, cavity (crypto fetish), min. dam., fine cracks, slight traces of abrasion;
the opening on the back was used by the “nganga” to give vital force to the figure, afterwards it was filled with magical material: “bilongo” (medicine) or relics of an ancestor (hair, pieces of finger nails or bones) as a symbol of the power and spirit of the deceased relative. Afterwards the opening was closed by a piece of fabric or a plug. As long as the spirit stayed within the statue, it watched over his descendants and punished contempts against customs and rules. Belonging to the so-called “crypto-power figures”, a terminology introduced by William Fagg.

The object Small standing male figure “mukuya” with the object ID 3037702 was part of the auction 78th tribal art auction on October 18, 2014. The object with the lot number 417 achieved a sales price of EUR 3,400 with an asking price of EUR 1,800.

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