Female Mask (Gambanda or Kambanda)

early 1900s

Africa, Central Africa, Democratic Republic of Congo, Pende-style maker

Medium

Wood, plant fiber, and colorant

Measurements

Overall: 27 x 22 x 28.5 cm (10 5/8 x 8 11/16 x 11 1/4 in.)

Credit Line

Leonard C. Hanna Jr. Fund 2008.150

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Location

108A African

Did You Know?

This female mask would have performed in a collective multimedia event with audience participation.

Description

Realized in typical Central Pende style, this mask is believed to represent gambanda, the chief's wife. In light of Pende theories about gender and physiognomy, the mask is an ideal expression of a woman's facial features and thus reflects her calm, obedient, peaceful, and self-controlled demeanor. The intricate hairstyle consisting of hundreds of miniature twists imitates a once fashionable hairdo. Pende sculptors inherited their position and often worked on the outskirts of the village so that few could see them at work.