MC1430 Rare Bwami Cult Lega Mask with Handle rare Mask with Handle

The face covered with kaolin and in the shape of a heart is very characteristic of the Lega,

Although the Idimu masks are significantly larger than the Lukwakongo maskettes, they are very close stylistically. These are collective masks used during ceremonies reserved for high-ranking Bwami

This type of mask was used as part of the Bwami, an association that organized the social structure and ensured the stability of the Lega community.

The Lega are a Bantu forest people of Central Africa, established in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), in the provinces of South Kivu and Maniema. 

- Lega. Ethics and Beauty in the heart of Africa. Daniel P. Biebuyck. 2002. KBC.
- Lega jewels from the Benoît Rousseau collection. Viviane Baeke, RMCA and Benoît Rousseau. 2013. BRUNEAF.

- In search of the meaning of Bwami, through a collection unlike any other. Viviane Baeke. Undated. Royal Museum for Central Africa.

- The sculpture of the Lega. Daniel P. Biebuyck. 1994. Galerie Hélène and Philippe Leloup-Paris-New-York.

- The arts of Zaire, Vol II Eastern Zaire. Daniel P. Biebuyck, 1986, University of California Press.

- The Art of the Central African Lega, Elizabeth L. Cameron. 2013, Quai Branly Museum.

- Lega Culture. Art, Initiation and Moral Philosophy Among a Central African People. Daniel P. Biebuyck. 1973. University of California Press.
- The Lega and their art. In the footsteps of a dreamer lost in Congoland Emile-Alexandre Georges. 2005. Royal Museum for Central Africa.

- The Lega Art - Greatness and Humility. In the Vallois collection, Valentine Plisnier and Michel Boulanger, 2016.

A similar mask is illustrated in "Masks in Congo", by Marc Léo Félix, page 57.
Other Lega "with handle" masks have been published in:
Biebuyck, 2002, page 79 cat 25
Plisnier, pages 64 and 122
Sotheby's Arts from Africa and Oceania, 06/12/2012, lot 84 (very well sold)

The heart-shaped face covered with kaolin is very characteristic of the Lega art

Idimu masks are significantly larger than Lukwakongo masks, but stylistically very close
These are collective masks used during ceremonies for high-ranking people of the Bwami, an association that organized the social structure and ensured the stability of the Lega community.
This type of mask was used as part of the cult of the Bwami, an association that organized the social structure
and ensured the stability of the Lega community.

The Lega are a Bantu forest people of Central Africa, established in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), in the provinces of South Kivu and Maniema