Lumbu reliquary figure - Lot 73

Lot n° 73
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Estimation :
3000 - 4000 EUR
Lumbu reliquary figure - Lot 73
Lumbu reliquary figure GABON Wood, superb patina of honey use, remains of black lacquered patina in the hollows H. 36,4 cm Implanted in the South-West of Gabon and in the West of the Democratic Republic of Congo, the lumbu constitute with the punu the group of Eshira. Manipulated by the nganga, diviner-healer, these lumbu reliquary figures played the role of intermediary between the visible and invisible worlds, that of the living and the dead. Thus, through their prism, the diviner came into contact with the spirits of the ancestors. Some heads had magical charges called bilongo, as here, appearing at the back of the skull. Their rarity can be explained by the fact that most of them were buried with the nganga to which they belonged. Rare and unpublished reliquary figure, whose cylindrical part is finely hatched. The face framed by a beautiful hairstyle with two braids overhanging the neck. A honey patina gives the face with closed eyes more softness and serenity, to which is added a powerful force of introspection.