SONGYE PEOPLE

Songye Fetish

SONGYE PEOPLE

Songye Fetish

AAL1061
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This imposing standing male figure it is the joint creation of a skilled sculptor and a trained ritual practitioner, or Nganga (healer). The face has features represented with sensitivity, with semicircular eyes closed under arched eyebrows that extend on each side towards the lines of the jaw. This gives the face its distinctive V shape, interrupted by the short horizontal line of the chin. The body is a succession of articulated angular shapes, from the straight shoulders and tubular arms to the side of the torso, the protruding abdomen on each side from which the hands rest and the telescopic cones forming the thighs and calves. Large-scale power figures, like this example, were central to the lives of the Songye communities. The fetish was kept in a special enclosure positioned in a highly visible location, such as the center of the village or close to the chief's house.

It is made of carved wood, complemented with a fabric and metal skirt. 

Length: 11 cm
Height: 40,5 cm
Width: 11.5 cm
Weight: 1,213 kg

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