Big round mask "kifwebe" ·  R. D. Congo, Luba · ID: 3035882

Description

wood, kaolin, red and black paint, animal hair, of hollowed round form, narrow slit eyes, entirely coated with curved concentrical grooves, old collection label backside, pierced around the rim, min. dam., small missing parts, slight traces of abrasion, base;
such masks were danced at the death of a chief or other eminent person, or when a person assumed an important political title. The etymology of “kifwebe” is “to chase away or put to flight, death”. Such a sense would be appropriate to a further context for their use: in the rituals of the “kazanzi” society, through which sorcery is confronted and eliminated from the community. Complex costumes of animal skins and raffia were worn, and the masks were danced in couples, one representing the male spirit, the other a female. One surmises that the masks were performed to mark moments of important social transition and transformation.

L’objet Big round mask “kifwebe” avec l’ID d’objet 3035882 a fait partie de la dernière vente aux enchères 75th tribal art auction dans 30 novembre 2013 le Zemanek-Münster Hôtel des ventes. L’objet portant le numéro de lot 418 a atteint un prix de vente de 13 000 €.

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Littérature comparée

Roberts, Mary Nooter, Memory, New York 1996, p. 86 f. Nooter Roberts, Mary, Luba, Mailand 2007, ill. 21 Neyt, Francois, Luba, Aan de Bronnen van de Zaire, Paris 1994, p. 203