Kongo Nkondi Nkisi Fetish figure, African art statue mallet female Congo DRC

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Kongo Nkondi Nkisi Fetish figure, African art statue mallet female Congo DRC:
$195.00

The Kongo people are distributed throughout the Zaire River Basin, from the modern day Republic of the Congo down through northern Angola. Known for their many art forms, as well as filed, sharpened teeth among Kongo women, the Kongo are a large and diverse ethnic group, consisting of a number of smaller subgroups. Art and sculpture is made for a wide variety of reasons among these people. Unique to the Kongo\'s region are the \'nkisi,\' carvings considered extremely powerful by the people, and even by British colonialists who ordered them destroyed when found, fearing that they could be an effective resistance to the colonization of Africa. These \"fetishes\" are generally adorned with nails, or blades of metal, and are the only figures in African art embellished in this way. Nkisis aside, however, the Kongo produce many different styles of art, each of which have gained substantial attention and notoriety from collectors. This beautiful feminine nkisi figure displays exaggerated Kongo styling, especially in the facial features, with sharpened teeth, elongated head, tall, woven coiffure, large pointed breasts, and fat rolls around the neck, traditionally a sign of prosperity. In her hands, she holds two large mallets, one of two common themes among Nkondi figures (the other of which is the better known spear holding stance). The external surface exhibits a thick, encrusted patina, which still holds some of the earth from the region in its crevices, and in many places, this patina has been nicked or rubbed down from handling and possible implementation. There are a few minor age cracks, namely on the right arm, none of which affect the structural integrity of the piece, and it does stand erect on its own without assistance. A fearsome, mysterious, and grotesquely beautiful piece from central Africa, and what continues to be one of the most undeveloped regions of the world.Dimensions are 16\" x 7\" x 6\" Medium: Wood*We cannot offer a 100% guarantee of any piece\'s traditional/ceremonial use unless stated in the sale. We know the region from which it originated, and 100% guarantee that it is a genuine piece of African art, handmade by the indigenous peoples of the region, only there are no explicit claims being made on the nature of its use before it arrived in our shop.