Maternity figure – Wood – Yombe – Congo

Powerfull Yombe maternity figure from DR Congo.
The 300,000 YOMBE people are artistically prolific. Their maternity figures have a high pointed or rounded coiffure incised with geometric motifs.
This superb example of Kongo sculpture shows the emphasis given to the head and detailed body. This female figure embodied a gentler spiritual force then the threatening male figures and was used for fertility rituals. A child is laying on her lap.
Good condition with beautiful scarifications and traces of tribal use.

Provenance: Manfred Schäfer collection, ex- gallery owner from Ulm, Germany.