Lega Katanda figure of Bwami - SOLD OUT
In Lega African art, this character represented is Katanda, Matte, a bad, unstable and adulterous woman, the opposite of what should be the initiated wife of a kindi: "I loved you; Erotic Destroy the Righteous and the Good, They Destroy Katanda. " Literally, katanda is the term for a mat, but it is also a metaphor for the dispersal of red ants (the bursting of endless columns of mabari ants when they encounter obstacles or sources of food). This is why the term evokes evil and danger.
If we personify Katanda, in this case, we are referring to a bad person (man or woman). The image reminds high-ranking initiated women, united for life by the bonds of marriage to their kindi husbands, that one expects from them the reserve in all and that severe sanctions are inflicted on those who break the moral prohibitions . The character also refers to a seducer who, initiated high rank, causes a serious disturbance within the group.
00675
Data sheet
- Presumed dating
- Mid XXth century
- Size
- 32 x 18 cm
- Ethnic group
- Material(s)
- Wood
- Country
- Origin
- Tribal art collection Belgium
- Condition
- Excellent
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In Lega African art, this character represented is Katanda, Matte, a bad, unstable and adulterous woman, the opposite of what should be the initiated wife of a kindi: "I loved you; Erotic Destroy the Righteous and the Good, They Destroy Katanda. " Literally, katanda is the term for a mat, but it is also a metaphor for the dispersal of red ants (the bursting of endless columns of mabari ants when they encounter obstacles or sources of food). This is why the term evokes evil and danger.
If we personify Katanda, in this case, we are referring to a bad person (man or woman). The image reminds high-ranking initiated women, united for life by the bonds of marriage to their kindi husbands, that one expects from them the reserve in all and that severe sanctions are inflicted on those who break the moral prohibitions . The character also refers to a seducer who, initiated high rank, causes a serious disturbance within the group.