Tribal Art

Prestige spoon with anthropomorphic handle. The carved motif symbolizing an ancestor refers to the creation, when the first Makonde man would have carved a female image who became the mother of his children and who has been revered ever since. Matt patina, lacks, small accidents.
Height on base: 47 cm.
The Makonde, a matrilineal Bantu people of northern Mozambique and southern Tanzania, wore helmet masks called lipiko, mapiko, during initiation ceremonies for young people . The Makonde venerate an ancestor, which explains the abundance of relatively naturalistic female statuary. In addition to face masks, midimu, the Makonde also produce body masks featuring the female bust, exalting fertility.