Angola

A statue associated with the therapeutic cult type Hamba, this Chokwe sculpture embodies a feminine tutelary spirit, which should be invoked to benefit from its favors related to fertility or healing.
These figures were arranged around the muyombo altar, a tree at the foot of which sacrifices and offerings were once made. Sculptures such as figures made in sticks or poles (Mbunji or mbanji), planted in the ground, were also associated. The related ethnic groups had the same type of altar, a witness before which rituals, oaths, and important transactions were concluded.

Joseph Herman collection