Figure Holding Cup

Origin: Yombe Tribe, D.R. Congo
Composition: wood, stain

Like many West African tribes, the Yombe carve figures representing ancestors and deities which fit into a somewhat strictly constructed belief system. Within this belief system, ancestors may be the source of protection, health, fertility and tribal progress. Small figures such as this piece, a finely crafted figure with open mouth and eyes and holding a cup can be used for such purposes or represent spirits, often used to teach proverbs as part of male and female initiation societies.

Purchased in 1999 in the Congo, the piece is credited to and carved in the style of the Yombe, a subgroup of peoples within the larger Bakongo tribal society. It is thought to be more than 30 years old from information gathered at the time of purchase. Buyers should be mindful that reproductions of Bakongo statues are now being produced for export in Cameroon and Ivory Coast and we come across them very frequently in our travels.

The type and quality of wood on this piece is generally limited to the Congo and the design elements are consistent with Yombe pieces we have had before, some of our favorites throughout the scope of the SUJARO collection. The open mouth and open eyes of most Yombe pieces (as with their masks) create a very powerful, moving energy and transmit the intense power they are intended to convey.