Tribal Art

Figure of a couple whose silhouettes assembled back to back and treated in a very stylized way, form a sculpted object testifying to the sensitivity of its creator.
In African art lega, this type of small anthropomorphic figure, intended for an initiate of the Bwami, was part of a set used over the initiations. Within the Léga, the Bwami society, open to men and women, organized social and political life. There were up to seven levels of initiation, each associated with emblems. The teacher guided the aspiring lega to a place where African lega masks and statuettes were exhibited, and it was through careful observation that the future initiate had to guess the more or less complex meaning of these objects, true metaphors largely referring to proverbs and sayings. Each of these ...

The tribal fetishes of the Kongo kingdom have a magic charge generally lodged on the abdomen in a sealed cavity. The gaze encrusted with dark pupils is associated with extra lucid abilities. erosions.
The nganga , sorcerers but also healers, were in charge of religious activities and mediation with the God called Nzambi through this type of figure, most often consecrated anthropomorphic tribal sculptures, named nkisi.
Among the Kongo, the nganga was responsible for rituals by activating a spiritual force with a nkondi (pl. nkissi). The term nkisi was then used to designate the notions of "sacred" or "divine". The most influential category of "minkisi kongo" consisted of instruments to help regional chiefs enforce the law. A metal object was nailed to a wooden figure as ...

Belgian African art collection.
Effigy of figurative ancestor seated, hands resting on knees. In African tribal art, this type of sculpture associated with individual worship adorned the Dogon family altar. Thick ritual crusty patina.

Carved for the most part on commission by a family, Dogon statues can also be the object of worship by the entire community. However, their functions remain little known. In parallel with Islam, Dogon religious rites are organized around four main cults: the Lebe, relating to fertility, under the spiritual authority of the Hogon, the Wagem, the cult of the ancestors under the authority of the patriarch, the Binou invoking the world of the spirits and directed by the priest of the Binou, and the society of the masks concerning funerals.

Altar figure representing a hogon, religious leader, with a hoe and a cane. Golden heterogeneous patina, crystallized residues of ritual anointings. Desication cracks. Gaps and erosions.
Carved for the most part to order placed by a family, the Dogon statues can also be the object of worship on the part of the whole community when they commemorate, for example, the foundation of the village. However, their functions remain little known. Alongside Islam, Dogon religious rites are organized around four main cults: the Lébé, relating to fertility, under the spiritual authority of the Hogon, the Wagem, cult of the ancestors under the authority of the patriarch, the Binou invoking the spirit world and led by the priest of the Binou, and the society of masks concerning the funeral.

Support for a traditional cult, this two-headed sculpture that was placed on an altar consists of reclining bust figures. The abdomen that connects them is pierced with a thick metal peg. This accessory could represent the umbilicus associated with the lineage.
Old, velvety patina, desiccation cracks, thin blackish residual film.
Named Gurunsi, Gourundi, by their Mossi neighbors, the groups living to the west and south of the Mossi plateau, Lela, Winiama, Nuna and Nunuma are the main mask carvers. Religiously, the Gurunsi believe in a superior being, Yi, who withdrew from the world after creating it and whose altar occupies the center of the village. Yi has sent, to represent him, the spirit Su, embodied in all the masks and honored by an altar which can be replaced by a ...

This male figurative sculpture adopts certain canons of Baule statues, including muscular legs with protruding calves and a frontal posture, hands on the hips. Polychrome patina and residues of ritual libations. Fissure of desiccation.
About sixty ethnic groups populate the Ivory Coast, including the Baule, in the center, Akans from Ghana, people of the savannah, practicing hunting and agriculture just like the Gouro from whom they borrowed their ritual cults and sculpted masks. Two types of statues are produced by the Baoulé, Baulé, within the ritual framework: The Waka-Sona statues, "being of wood" in Baoulé, evoke an assié oussou, being of the earth. They are part of a type of statues intended to be used as a medium tool by the komien diviners, the latter being ...

This statue of teké-Yansi ancestor, in a dance position, legs spread half-folded, and whose fetishsimialires, miniatures, form the arms, has a hollowed-out quadrangular abdomen in which relics or a magic charge (bilongo) were arranged. Traditional scarifications, in parallel grooves (mabina) covering his face, were usually coated with clay. Playing as a powerful character, warrior, nganga, hunter emeritus, or family ancestor, this tribal statue was honored as part of the family cult. Desication cracks, gaps in one foot. Established between the Republic of Congo, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Gabon, the Teké were organized as chiefdoms, the leader of which was often chosen among the blacksmiths. The head of the family, mfumu , had the right to life or death over his family whose ...

Similar to the protective fetishes of Songye and Kasai Luba, this partially desecrated anthropomorphic figure contains magical or therapeutic ingredients inserted into the horns of the head cavities. It is therefore a type object nkisi (pl. mankisi). The dark speckled patina is brightened by the presence of multicolored glass beads, giving a special character to the statuette. Cracks, abrasions.
Live east of the Luba kingdom on the banks of the Mbujimayi River, and having adopted part of the Luba culture, the Kanyok , Kanioc, or Bena Kanioka, have created prestigious objects, water pipes, neck presses, sticks, and stools, and are best known for statuettes represented in different postures, made of dark wood and wearing bun hairstyles. According to the Kanyok religion, the human ...

br>This sculpture of a woman presented standing on a circular base, her hands positioned on either side of a slightly rounded abdomen, offers an evocative image of fecundity. The bust is small, and muscles are drawn on the stocky legs. She wears a necklace of ancient pearls, a loincloth, and body scarification. Abraded matte patina. Slight cracks and lacks at the base.
This type of African statues belonged to the Temne women's society, named Bundu . The Mendé neighbors had similar effigies. These were used in healing rites for transgressors of the rules of the Sandé society. Abraded matt patina. The Temne organized themselves into chieftaincies headed by a supreme chief. The ragbenle or mneke society, responsible for fertility, intervened at the death of the chief. The ...

Ex-collection of African American tribal art.
This Chokwe statue, generally associated with the therapeutic cult of type Hamba, embodies a female ancestor supposed to guarantee fecundity or healing. These figures were placed around the muyombo altar, a tree at the foot of which sacrifices and offerings were once made. Sculptures such as figures made from sticks or poles ( mbunji or mbanji ), planted in the ground, were also included. Related ethnic groups had this same type of altar, a witness before which rituals, oaths, and important transactions were concluded. The scarification of the face are those that adorn the mask Mukishi wa Mwana Pwo worn during Mukanda initiation ceremonies, associated with fertility and fecundity. The statue and its headdress are sheathed with a ...

Facial scarifications ichi indicate that this igbo sculpture depicts a titled man, wearing a crest in the shape of a volatile. He is depicted head-on on a bench, sitting straight back in a determined attitude. Two-coloured crusty patina, red ochre crehauts on the face.
Seeional body marks, tattoos and scarifications indicated the grade achieved in the initiation society. This effigy, embodying a tutelary deity, intermediate between men and the god named Chukwu was destined to be placed in the obu (Sing.: obi), houses of the men of the Cross River. . The culture Igbo originates from the mythology of the Kingdom Nri of Nigeria, according to which the gods brought to believers palm oil, cassava, and yam-based remedies. These effigies often show symbolic objects, including a mirror in ...

In addition to its remarkable statuary, the African art of the Mangbetu presents a wide variety of everyday objects, instruments and adornments. This ancient statuette has an interesting patina composed of several layers including an ochre-red revealing under a greyish coat and light beige cracked. Forearms and sex are missing. The statues of mangbetu ancestors are easily identifiable thanks to the typical headdress they have. This headdress represents the ideal canon of beauty within the mangbetu aristocracy. From an early age, children's skulls were compressed with raffia cords that distorted their skulls, and a high, flared headdress further accentuated the importance. Long scars, which varied according to the circumstances, roamed the sculpture, evoking the tribal paintings and ...

This statue of traditional African art, of the djennenké type, was generally made to order by a family and placed on the family altar Tiré Kabou. The African tribal statues of the Dogon can also be worshiped by the whole community when they commemorate, for example, the foundation of the village. These statues, sometimes embodying the nyama of the deceased, are placed on ancestor altars and take part in various rituals, including those of the sowing and harvesting periods. However, their functions remain little known. The figures with raised arms would symbolize a prayer to Amma to grant the rain essential to all life. It could also be a gesture of contrition following the violation of a ritual law that resulted in a drought.
Desiccated surface, slightly satiny golden beige patina.

This figure of naturalist style ancestor has a hairstyle in parallel shells, the eyes are surrounded by metal, reputed to have magical properties, and the character sports a loincloth made up of animal teeth connected by ropes. Oiled dark patina. Controlled xylophageal prints.
The peoples known as Fang, or Pahouins, described as conquering warriors, invaded by successive leaps, from villages to villages, the entire region between the Sanaga in Cameroon and the Ogooué in Gabon, between the 18th and the beginning of the twentieth century.
In the depths of their boxes, in a dark and often smoky nook, the heads of lineages preciously stored their Byéri, the relic chests and the sculptures that undersaw them. The daily life of the Fang had three priorities: perpetuating social ...

Unusual composition for this urhobo statue, depicting a creature with a zoomorphic appearance, aggressive in appearance, flanked at the back by a long neck and a head with minimalist features. Brown matte patina, low contrast pigmented highlights. Very minor chips and cracks.
The Urhobo, near the northwest of the Niger Delta River, form the main ethnic group in Delta State among the 36 states of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. They speak Urhobo, a language of the Niger-Congo group. Together with the closely related Isoko, they are collectively known as Sobo. Their large sculptures representing the spirits of nature, edjo, or founding ancestors of the clan, to whom sacrifices were offered, were grouped together in sanctuaries within the villages. They also produce figures ...

Statues of ancestors in the African art of the Mbede, Mbete, or Ambete.

The worship of the ancestors, among the Mbete, is accompanied by statues embodying an ancestor, chief or dignitary, and of which a dorsal cavity contains the remains. The relics of the ancestors can also be collected in anthropomorphic boxes of which this type of sculpture served as a lid. The head offers a blind, grimacing face. Kaolin patina and red ocher highlights. Minimal desication erosions and cracks.


The Mbete form a tribe of Gabon, on the border of the Middle Congo, neighboring the Obamba, whose history has been marked by a long-term conflict against the Teke. They do not have a centralized political organization, practice the "onkani" ancestor worship still in use.

African animal figure Nkisi (pl. mankishi ) of "koso" type, receptacle of magic ingredients bishimba. The addition of metal accessories, leather pouches and cords, was supposed to increase the power of the fetish. Mediator between the living and the dead for the Kongo, the dog was renowned for its knowledge of the supernatural world, its flair and its vision. Golden brown satin patina, abrasions.
The Vili , the Lâri, the Sûndi, the Woyo, the Bembe, the Bwende, the Yombé and the Kôngo formed the Kôngo group, led by King ntotela . Their kingdom reached its peak in the 16th century with the trade in ivory, copper and the slave trade. With the same beliefs and traditions, they produced a statuary endowed with a codified gesture in relation to their vision of the world.

Rare Songola statuette, with residues of light pigments on one part of the face and tiny traces of red ochre on the other. These statuettes embody a deceased ancestor of the Nsubi society. Some of the sculptures were reserved for the Songola high ranking officials of the Bwami. Beautiful glossy patina, abrasions from use.
Mixed by marriage with the Lega, Ngengele and Zimba, the Songola are governed by the elders of the lineages. They borrowed from the Luba and Songye the Luhuna institution composed of dignitaries and that of the Bwami by their lega wives. The Songola live by hunting and fishing, they engage in sculpture although the objects associated with the Bwami cult come from the Lega. Among their reduced statuary, the figures of ancestors of the Nsubi society ...

Ex-Belgian tribal art collection.
Sculpted figure embodying a sacred ancestor, elaborated following various rituals prescribed by the diviner and to which the descendants joined. It was after the extinction of the lineage that one could separate from the object. Deeply hollowed on either side of a meditative face, the large ears fit under a hairstyle pulled back. The treatment of the upper part of the bust is distinctive of the group, while the arms with fingered hands frame a slender morphology. Drips of dark color, others reddish, can be read on the patina rubbed with ocher. Thick deposits on the top and on the shoulders, mixed with twigs. erosions. The populations of the same cultural region, grouped together under the name "lobi", form a fifth of the inhabitants of Burkina Faso. ...

Sculpted with precision in dense wood, this prestigious stick depicting the female ancestor would intervene on human fertility, the fertility of the land, and successful hunts. The face refers to a type of mask linked to the Mukanda Mukishi wa Mwna pwo initiation ceremonies wearing the kambu ja tota ("Chokwe and Their Bantu Neighbors" Rodrigues de Areia.) Reddish patina. Abrasions.
Of Lunda origin, the Lwena, Luena, emigrated from Angola to Zaire in the 19th century, repelled by the Chokwe. When some became slave traders, others, the Lovale, found refuge in Zambia. Their society is matrilineal, exogamous and polygamous. The Lwena became known for their sculptures embodying figures of deceased ancestors and chiefs, and their masks linked to the initiation rites of the mukanda . Their ...

Sculpture from the area around Dar-es-Salam, on the coast of Tanzania, where the Kaguru, Luguru, Kwéré, Zaramo and Doé tribes live.
The female figure is recurrent in the sculpted works.
Perched on a seat with openwork feet, a woman wears a double crest pierced with holes. The arms are exaggeratedly long, extending from fingered hands, one of which rests on a breast.
Gray beige patina with kaolin.
The Zaramo and the tribes that surround them, such as the Kwéré and the Doé, designed dolls generally associated with fertility, but to which other virtues would be attributed. Its primary role is played during the period of confinement of the young initiate Zaramo. The novice will behave towards the object as with a child, and will dance with it during the closing ...