Jump to navigation
Mask
Kifwebe
unidentified Congolese
Congolese
The German folklorist Leo Frobenius, who visited southeastern Zaire in 1906-7, provided the earliest description of the use and function of Songye masks based on observations of their traditionalcontext. His notes (published by Ernst Vatter 1926:107,108,181) indicate that, at that early date, the masks were associated with acult of the dead and were used in the prevention and curing of illness, and perhaps also in the expulsion of the spirits of the dead.In the past, masks in this style have been attributed solely to the Songye, and are referred to as kifwebe , "wooden mask" (Merriam 1978). It became clear that there were problems with this attributionwhen Joseph Cornet published several similar masks as Luba in the catalogue of the Bronson collection (Cornet 1978:276-9). In fact, it appears that both the Songye and the Luba produce these masks, especially in the area of transition between the two groups. This mask was collected in the village of Kahombo, in the Songye-Bekalebwe area of Kabongo. J. W. Mestach has found two figures wearing masks with some of the same style characteristics, one of which was collected in the Bena Mwo chiefdom, near the Bena Lumba, in this same Kabongo region. The mask is unusual for its lack of holes around the rim for attaching a costume. Of the seven masks by the same hand studied by Mestach, two lack holes, indicating perhaps that these are magical or "fetish" masks to which sacrifices were made but which were not worn. The two holes in the cheeks seem to confirm this, for some magical figures have similar holes for attaching monkey hair (Mestach 1984). -- Professor Christopher Roy, School of Art and Art History, University of Iowa
Southern Savannah Africa Congo (Zaire)
Songye Luba
Height: 29 inches
Wood
The Stanley Collection
University of Iowa. Stanley Museum of Art
x1986_551
U.S. and international copyright laws protect this digital image. Commercial use or distribution of the image is not permitted without prior permission of the copyright holder. For permission to use the digital image, please complete an image request form http://www.lib.uiowa.edu/forms/uima or contact the University of Iowa Museum of Art.
Contact the Stanley Museum of Art at the University of Iowa: https://stanleymuseum.uiowa.edu/about/contact/
wood (plant material)
183425165
Spirit Initiation
Magical fetish mask