Neckrest - Hemba - Congo - SOLD
Neck Support in Traditional African Art
In African art there are many variations of these everyday objects, particularly in the eastern regions of Africa. A curved seat whose slice is decorated with a fine alto-hemba hemba is supported by a cariatidic head of ancestor similar to the statues Singiti, with their beard and their cross-headdress pulled back.In the south-east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Hemba people occupy vast plains surrounded by high hills and limited by streams, rocks or swamps.
The Hemba have long been subject to the Luba Empire, their cultural identity and religious although ancient was unknown when, as early as the seventeenth century, Hemba societies were already deployed east of the Luba, as shown by François Neyt (1977). The social organization is based on a system of clans bringing together several families from a common ancestor.
Each clan knows the history of its migrations, conquests and alliances and obeys a number of prescriptions, duties and prohibitions, the most important of which is food. Independent of the others, a clan can constitute an entire village. Farmers and hunters, the Hemba practice the cult of ancestors not only to keep the memory of their great leaders, but also to establish the current authority and power of clan leaders.
This African neck rest was bought by a collector. Visit our premier art gallery to find others.
Provenance : collection privée BelgiqueDatation estimée : années 1970Dimensions : 14 x 16 cmMatériau : bois
00135
Data sheet
- Presumed dating
- Circa 1970
- Size
- Ethnic group
- Material(s)
- Wood
- Country
- Origin
- Tribal art collection Belgium
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Neck Support in Traditional African Art
In African art there are many variations of these everyday objects, particularly in the eastern regions of Africa. A curved seat whose slice is decorated with a fine alto-hemba hemba is supported by a cariatidic head of ancestor similar to the statues Singiti, with their beard and their cross-headdress pulled back.In the south-east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Hemba people occupy vast plains surrounded by high hills and limited by streams, rocks or swamps.
The Hemba have long been subject to the Luba Empire, their cultural identity and religious although ancient was unknown when, as early as the seventeenth century, Hemba societies were already deployed east of the Luba, as shown by François Neyt (1977). The social organization is based on a system of clans bringing together several families from a common ancestor.
Each clan knows the history of its migrations, conquests and alliances and obeys a number of prescriptions, duties and prohibitions, the most important of which is food. Independent of the others, a clan can constitute an entire village. Farmers and hunters, the Hemba practice the cult of ancestors not only to keep the memory of their great leaders, but also to establish the current authority and power of clan leaders.
This African neck rest was bought by a collector. Visit our premier art gallery to find others.
Provenance : collection privée BelgiqueDatation estimée : années 1970Dimensions : 14 x 16 cmMatériau : bois