Magnificent guardian of the reliquary head. - Fang - Gabon (No reserve price)

Reliquary guardian head from Biery - Fang - Gabon
Among the Fang, Byeri is linked to the cult of ancestors and more precisely to the reliquaries dedicated to them.

According to Perrois, it was behind the head of the family's bed that the reliquaries, wooden effigies and personal relics were discreetly placed.
He also points out that important ancestors of the lineage could also be buried in the very chamber of the head of the family, in order to protect the remains!

These reliquaries are made up of two parts:
- the bark chest box which will contain bone relics, which the Fang call nsekh o byeri, the belly,
- and the perpendicular figure which surmounts the box: eyema o byeri which means the head.

Regarding the contents of the boxes, Perrois tells us that the Fang relics consisted of skulls, long bones, or even simple fragments of bone and teeth.

Family relics were carefully identified and collected a few months after the death of the notable, cleaned, dried and sometimes decorated with metallic or copper inlays.

Thereafter they were periodically extracted from the bark chests and honored by the application of red paste (padouk wood powder mixed with oil).

The father of the family would then call upon the ancestors to grant wishes for luck, wealth and fertility.
Byeri statuettes could still be used as puppets during Melan rites.

On the stitched bark chest, we found the wooden effigies that we know.
Either heads alone with the stem inserted into the lid, or full statuettes placed in a seated position on the edges.

Less frequently, some statuettes could sometimes contain discreet inclusions with magical powers, hidden behind copper or mirror inlays, behind the ears, or at the top of the forehead.
And also added were bone fragments, most often human molars.