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Power Figure (nkisi nduda) / Artist Unknown, African, Yombe Peoples Democratic Republic of the Congo
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About this Item
Record Details
- Accession Number
- 2005/1.191
- Title
- Power Figure (nkisi nduda)
- Artist Nationality
- Congolese
- Medium and Support
- wood, mirror, glass, hide, fiber, feathers, resin, pigment
- Object Creation Date
- 2nd half of 19th century
- Object Creation Place
- Africa (continent)
- Congo Republic (nation)
- Creation Place 1
- Africa (continent)
- Creation Place 2
- Congo Republic (nation)
- Credit Line
- Gift of Candis and Helmut Stern
- Dimensions
- 47 cm x 44 cm x 40 cm (18 1/2 in. x 17 5/16 in. x 15 3/4 in.)
- Century
- Late 19th century
- Primary Object Classification
- Ritual Objects
- Primary Object Type
- minkisi
- Physical Description
- Small wooden figure with naturalistic human face engulfed in layers of multi-media attachments including animal hides, medicine packs, and a turban bound in feathers. Figure holds the tip of a curved piece of wood in its mouth, the other end of which terminates in its clutched right hand. A round mirrior is embdedded in the figure's "belly." The hides and fibers creating the “skirt” are intact, making it unique.
- Subject Matter
- Ritual specialists called banganga (plural of nganga) use minkisi (plural of nkisi) as divination tools. With the help of incantations, whistle sounds, claps, and other interactive gestures, ritual practitioners call ancestral spirits from the underworld to inhabit sculptures like this one as a means of resolving social, political, or personal problems, which befall communities or individuals.
- Secondary Keywords
- analytical functions
- associated concepts
- disciplines
- fetish figures
- functions
- functions (activities)
- functions by general context
- health sciences
- objects we use
- occult sciences
- people and culture
- religions and religious concepts
- religious concepts
- science
- science and related disciplines
- sculpture
- sculpture by function
- visual works
- visual works by medium or technique
- visual works by subject type
- Rights
- If you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit https://umma.umich.edu/about/services/request-image/ for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form.
Technical Details
- Collection
- University of Michigan Museum of Art
- Image Size
- 1722 x 2904
- File Size
- 665 KB
- Record
- 2005/1.191
- Link to this Item
-
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-2005-sl-1.191/2005_1_191.jpg
Rights and Permissions
Related Links
Portfolios
- In public portfolios
IIIF
- Manifest
-
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/i/image/api/manifest/musart:2005-SL-1.191:2005_1_191.JPG
Cite this Item
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- Full citation
-
"Power Figure (nkisi nduda); Artist Unknown, African, Yombe Peoples Democratic Republic of the Congo." In the digital collection University of Michigan Museum of Art. https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-2005-sl-1.191/2005_1_191.jpg. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed May 04, 2024.
