Ancestor Figure Teke
Teke artist · 19th century
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Early modern · № 164
Nkisi Power Figure
Kongo artist and nganga (ritual specialist) · 19th–first half of 20th century
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Object record
Nkisi Power Figure
- Maker
- Kongo artist and nganga (ritual specialist)
- Date
- 19th–first half of 20th century
- Place
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Material
- Wood, pigment, resin, iron, brass, tin, cloth, plant fiber cord, beads, cowrie shells, bone or ivory, arrows, leather, seeds, animal horn
- Dimensions
- 58.8 × 26 × 25.4 cm
- Current collection
- Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
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Iron, brass, tin, arrows, and cowries have been added to this figure. In Kongo contexts, an nganga could activate nkisi figures in matters such as oaths and disputes; the accumulation of materials is visible around the entire form.
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Use the 3D view to inspect the overall form, then zoom in to compare surface, joins, and tool marks. Lighting controls can make shallow carving and material changes easier to see.
- Maker
- Kongo artist and nganga (ritual specialist)
- Date
- 19th–first half of 20th century
- Place
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Material
- Wood, pigment, resin, iron, brass, tin, cloth, plant fiber cord, beads, cowrie shells, bone or ivory, arrows, leather, seeds, animal horn
- Dimensions
- 58.8 × 26 × 25.4 cm
- Current collection
- Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
- Source
- The Met ↗
Related exhibitions
This work appears in
02Power & PresenceView exhibition ↗Related works
