Whistle (nsiba) / Artist Unknown, African, Vili Peoples, Congo Republic

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About this Item

Record Details

Accession Number
2005/1.181
Title
Whistle (nsiba)
Artist Nationality
Congolese
Medium and Support
wood, antelope horn
Object Creation Date
1925-1975
Object Creation Place
Africa (continent)
Congo Republic (nation)
Creation Place 1
Africa (continent)
Creation Place 2
Congo Republic (nation)
Dimensions
21.5 cm x 4.7 cm x 4.7 cm (8 7/16 in. x 1 7/8 in. x 1 7/8 in.)
Century
19th century
Primary Object Classification
Ritual Objects
Primary Object Type
musical instrument
Physical Description
Two components make up this vertical whistle. The superstructure is a wooden carving of two birds that face each other, bellies touching, with a small round object between them, so that each is holding it in their beaks. The birds' talons clutch the base of the sculpture. The base has a hole in the center into which the antelope horn is pegged.
Subject Matter
The sculpture atop the horn illustrates a Vili proverb warning about the complications that stem from fighting over the same woman. Ritual specialists often doubled as judges in time of moral and social instability. People facing seemingly irreconcilable problems consulted experts to get to the root of the problem. Banganga or professional practitioners used objects like this whistle to awaken ancestral forces lying latent in nearby minkisi sculptures.
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Technical Details

Image Size
888 x 2718
File Size
321 KB
Record
2005/1.181
Link to this Item
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-2005-sl-1.181/2005_1_181.jpg

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https://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/i/image/api/manifest/musart:2005-SL-1.181:2005_1_181.JPG

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"Whistle (nsiba); Artist Unknown, African, Vili Peoples, Congo Republic." In the digital collection University of Michigan Museum of Art. https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-2005-sl-1.181/2005_1_181.jpg. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed March 28, 2024.
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