LUBA female stool - Luba - DR Congo

Luba art refers to the important role women play in society, particularly in religious and political terms. As guardians of the bizila, the royal secrets and prohibitions, and in occupying positions of high responsibility at the court, their bodies were known to be powerful enough to welcome bavidye spiritual entities, with bodily ornaments that facilitate communication with these extraterrestrial beings. The veneration of femininity in Luba statuary confirms this holy authority and power, both earthly and spiritual. This ideal is represented here both physically—firm, pronounced breasts, well-defined genitals—and symbolically—hairstyle, scarification.