Nkishi protection Songye figurine - SOLD OUT
Nkishi / Nkisi protective figures can be tiny or very large in traditional art from african tribes in Congo (Songye, Kongo)Small Nkishi / Nkisi protective statue of male with rounded head and angular beard, large almond shaped eyes with open mouth. The hands resting on the extended stomach, large phallus below. Standing on a oval base.The Nkishi is a power figure that is common to many tribal groups of central and West Africa. They are carved by master craftsmen and are characterised by their angular shapes. There is usually a cavity within the figure for the placing of sacred substances that help activate them. These statues act as intermediaries between the land of the living and the ancestral spirits. The creation of such figures is a public event with professional carvers and elders deciding on the features to be carved. Once completed the statue would be ritually awakened by a specialist known as nganga who would empower it through filling the statue with substances known as bishimba that was composed of animal, plant and mineral substances. Announced dating by the previous collector : 1920's. According to us, this figurine is more recent.
00744
Data sheet
- Presumed dating
- Circa 1970
- Size
- 13 cm
- Ethnic group
- Material(s)
- Wood
- Country
- Origin
- Tribal art collection Switzerland
You might also like
Nkishi / Nkisi protective figures can be tiny or very large in traditional art from african tribes in Congo (Songye, Kongo)Small Nkishi / Nkisi protective statue of male with rounded head and angular beard, large almond shaped eyes with open mouth. The hands resting on the extended stomach, large phallus below. Standing on a oval base.The Nkishi is a power figure that is common to many tribal groups of central and West Africa. They are carved by master craftsmen and are characterised by their angular shapes. There is usually a cavity within the figure for the placing of sacred substances that help activate them. These statues act as intermediaries between the land of the living and the ancestral spirits. The creation of such figures is a public event with professional carvers and elders deciding on the features to be carved. Once completed the statue would be ritually awakened by a specialist known as nganga who would empower it through filling the statue with substances known as bishimba that was composed of animal, plant and mineral substances. Announced dating by the previous collector : 1920's. According to us, this figurine is more recent.