Mambu Manzambi (Congolese, b. 1943) Femme Fang 1989 Bronze o...

Estimate

£3,000 - £5,000

Mambu Manzambi (Congolese, b. 1943)
Femme Fang
1989
Bronze on a wooden plinth
Inscribed 'Femme Fang, Mambu 1989, Zaire'

Mambu Manzambi belongs to the circle of renowned Congolese sculptor Alfred Liyolo, who was General Director of the Art Academy of Kinshasa, from 1981 to 1991. 

The sculpture is a stylized representation of a "Fang reliquary guardian head," typically carved by members of the Byeri, an association of the Fang people of Gabon.

In Fang society, the sculptural heads would have served as part of a reliquary ensemble designed to complement a reliquary box containing portions of important ancestors. The heads were often the prime focus and locus of one’s spiritual essence.

Dimensions:
(Sculpture) 17.5 in. (H) x 11 in. (W) 
(Base) 3.25 in. (H)