SOLD / SOLD! MC1555 Superb monkey mask SOKO MUTU tribe HEMBA Chimpanzee Mask
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English description below
CONGO DRC
HEMBA - Monkey zoomorphic mask (Chimpanzee)
Local names:
"Mwisi Gwa So'o" and "Soko Mutu".
Faced with the very rich corpus of Hemba statuary, masks - found mainly in the eastern Hemba region, among the Mambwe and the Hombe - are rare. The modernity of the design - features summarized in their essential volumes, deeply curved "heart-shaped" face - responds to the power conferred on it. This mask from the so'o initiatory society, half-human, half-simian, expresses, in the "smile" of the disproportionate mouth, the grimacing features of the chimpanzee, considered by the Hemba as "a ferocious animal, highly agnostic , even predator of humans" (Blakely in African Arts, vol. 21, n° 1, 1987, p. 32). It appeared during funerals, to illustrate a chaotic beyond opposing the ordered world of the living (idem, p. 36).
The Hemba people live in eastern Congo DRC, between the Lualaba River (Congo River) to the west and Lake Tanganyka to the east
Their territory revolves around the Luika River which delimits the Hemba of the north and those of the south. They are therefore present in the south of the province of Maniema as well as in the north of the province of Tanganyka.
They are geographically and culturally close to the Luba.
Their territory revolves around the Luika River which delimits the Hemba of the north and those of the south. They are therefore present in the south of the province of Maniema as well as in the north of the province of Tanganyka.
They are geographically and culturally close to the Luba.
Features:
TYPE OF OBJECT: Mask.
ETHNIC GROUP: Hemba, Bahemba.
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Democratic Republic of Congo DRC
(ex Belgian Congo, ex Zaire).
MATERIAL: Wood.
DIMENSIONS: Height 26.5 cm.
CONDITION: Average.
(See photos).
Delivered WITHOUT the base.
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Bibliography - Bibliography
- So'o Masks and Hemba Funerary Festival, Thomas D. Blakely and Pamela AR Blakely, African Arts, Vol. 21, No. 1 (Nov., 1987), p. 30-37+84-86 (11 pages)
- So'o Masks and Hemba Funerary Festival, Thomas D. Blakely and Pamela AR Blakely, African Arts, Vol. 21, No. 1 (Nov., 1987), p. 30-37+84-86 (11 pages)
- The great Hemba statuary of Zaire, François Neyt, 1977, UCL Louvain-La-Neuve.
- African Arts, vol. 21, No. 1, 1987. Blakely
- Masks in Congo, Viviane Baeke, Baeke, Arthur Bourgeois, Kellim Brown, David Binkley, Rik Ceyssens, Marc Leo Felix, Pol Pierre Gossiaux, Manuel Jordanl, Constantin Petridis, Zoë Stroher, Julien Volper, Pan Yanqin. Edition Marc Leo Felix, 2016
- Masks in Congo, Viviane Baeke, Baeke, Arthur Bourgeois, Kellim Brown, David Binkley, Rik Ceyssens, Marc Leo Felix, Pol Pierre Gossiaux, Manuel Jordanl, Constantin Petridis, Zoë Stroher, Julien Volper, Pan Yanqin. Edition Marc Leo Felix, 2016
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CONGO DRC
HEMBA
Zoomorphic Chimpanze Mask
"Mwisi Gwa So'o" & "Soko Mutu"
The Hemba live in eastern Congo DRC, between the Lualaba river (Congo river), to the west, and Lake Tanganyka, to the east
Their territory is articulated around the Luika river which delimits the Hemba of the north and those of the south. They are therefore present in the south of the province of Maniema as well as in the north of the province of Tanganyika.
They are geographically and culturally close to the Luba
Their territory is articulated around the Luika river which delimits the Hemba of the north and those of the south. They are therefore present in the south of the province of Maniema as well as in the north of the province of Tanganyika.
They are geographically and culturally close to the Luba
Features:
TYPE OF OBJECT: Chimpanzee Mask.
ETHNIC GROUP: Hemba, Bahemba. .
ORIGIN: Democratic Republic of Congo.
DRC (ex Belgian Congo, ex Zaire).
MATERIAL: Wood.
DIMENSIONS: About 10 1/5 inches high.
CONDITION: Medium
Base is NOT included