Exceptional Zoomorphic Kifwebe Mask - medium density wood of the Ricinodendron family of trees - Luba-Zela - D.R.C.

Exceptional Zoomorphic Kifwebe Mask – Luba-Zela – D. R. C. In good state, but with full vintage appearance and bone dry. Small part of the rim at the back missing and native repair to the head. It dates to around 1930. On stand. Provenance: Ex- collection of the Right Reverend White Fathers of Africa, Antwerp, Belgium. Obtained from them by H. Westerdijk around 1960. This remarkable Kifwebe mask belongs to a group of examples whereby the carver has taken the artistic liberty to improvise on the lay-out of the standard model . According to the Right Reverend Fathers who sold this piece to my father, this mask represents the large, elongated head of a zebra with its mouth open and its lips turned-up the way zebra’s do when exited. The eyes have large upper lids with the pupils indicated by pointed dots. This rare model preceeds the Luba- Zela tradition of depicting animals combined with Kifwebe elements. This trend started in the 1960-1970 period. The striped pattern of the striated planes refers to the skin of the animal portrayed. Literature: M. L. Felix (ed.) : Congo Masks, Brussels, 2019, pp. 236 ff. Dimensions: 54 x 23 x 14 cm. People /Region: The Luba – Zela live in the southeastern part of the Luba block in the Shaba Province of S. W. D. R. C. Material: medium density wood of the Ricinodendron family of trees. Weight: 1. 14 kg. Sold with handwritten declaration of authenticity by Dr. P. Westerdijk, museum ethnologist and cultural anthropologist specialized, for over 50 years now, in the study of the material cultures in African nations that live south of the Sahara.