Petite maternité Lwena - RDC - Chokwe - DR Congo (No reserve price)

Belgian ex-collection of African art. Female figure associated with the mythical female ancestor, who would intervene in human fertility and land fertility. The face forms a miniature replica of the powerful mask mukishi wa pwo nyi cijingo ca tangwa, topped with the kambu ja tota. ('Chokwe and Their Bantu Neighbors' Rodrigues de Areia.) Light golden patina. Shine on the mouth. Originating from Lunda, the Lwena, Luena, migrated from Angola to Zaire in the 19th century, pushed back by the Chokwe. While some became slave traders, others, the Loyale, found refuge in Zambia. Their society is matrilineal, exogamous, and polygamous. The Lwena are known for their sculptures depicting ancestral figures and deceased chiefs, and their masks linked to the initiation rites of the mukanda. Their sculpture has been heavily influenced by that of the Chokwe.