The Cleveland Museum of Art
Collection Online as of April 25, 2024
Power figure (nkisi)
late 1800s-early 1900s
Overall: 17 x 7 x 6.5 cm (6 11/16 x 2 3/4 x 2 9/16 in.)
Location: not on view
Did You Know?
The nduda minkisi were loaded with gunpowder and/or medicine to protect their owners and to shoot “witches” and other enemies.Description
One of seven anthropomorphic figurines, these minkisi contained medicines in which an ancestral spirit was believed to reside. The medicines served a metaphorical rather than literal purpose in the resolution of conflicts among Kongo people. This figure contained white- and red-colored medicine loads on its belly and back. Its pose may refer to the nkisi’s capacity to see more than others.- ?-1961(Unidentified art dealer, Nice, FR, 1961, sold to René and Odette Delenne)1961-2010René [1901-1998] and Odette Delenne [1925-2012], Brussels, BE, 2010, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art.2010The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH, 2010
- Petridis, Constantine, et al. Fragments of the Invisible: The René and Odette Delenne Collection of Congo Sculpture. Cleveland, OH: Cleveland Museum of Art. Milan: 5 Continents Editions, 2013, 54-58. Mentioned: pp. 54, 56, 113; reproduced: 58-59, cat. 15
- Fragments of the Invisible: The Rene and Odette Delenne Collection of Congo Sculpture. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 27, 2013-February 9, 2014).
- {{cite web|title=Power figure (nkisi)|url=false|author=|year=late 1800s-early 1900s|access-date=25 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}
Source URL:
https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2010.437