Male Figure (Nkisi)

late 1800s-early 1900s

Africa, Central Africa, Democratic Republic of Congo (most likely), Cabinda, or Republic of the Congo, probably Yombe-style maker

Medium

Wood, organic material (including resin), metalized glass, and cloth

Measurements

Overall: 17 x 5.3 x 7 cm (6 11/16 x 2 1/16 x 2 3/4 in.)

Credit Line

René and Odette Delenne Collection, Leonard C. Hanna Jr. Fund 2010.434

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Location

108A African

Did You Know?

The medicinal substances remain intact in this particular figure, which is rare, as most were decommissioned before museum acquisition.

Description

Nkisi is often associated with the word spirit, as these figures are believed to host a variety ancestral spirits. With an intact mirror-covered stomach cavity, this figure was not decommissioned before sale or disposal, deeming its particular powers sustained. The cloth knots and carvings suggest that it was used to bind agreements or oaths, and to reconcile social and cosmological contradictions.