Mask - Ngombe - Congo - Widely used

Ngombe mask.
Shares a ribbed nose with Ngbaka and Ngbandi sculptures.
Parallel grooves run around the face, while the small ears are placed high on the mask.
Wooden lips form the teeth. Two-colored satin patina.
The people live in northwest Congo, on the banks of the Lualaba. A Bantu-speaking ethnic group.
The masks are used during the rituals of the mani society.
Materials: wood, kaolin, pigment.
Ex collection Walter Steinberg, collector from London and the USA.
Now for many years in my personal Dutch collection.