Carved statue, Luba, Congo

The traditional carving depicts a kneeling figure holding a sacred ritual bowl called a mboko with both hands. The sculpture bears the classic stylistic features of Luba court art: a prominently arched forehead, an elongated facial area with almond-shaped eyes, a finely crafted intricate hairstyle at the back of the head, and decorative brass studs applied to the forehead and temples.

Mboko vessels were among the most important objects of power and oracles in the Luba kingdom. The kneeling female figure represents a spiritual intermediary, as women were perceived in Luba culture as the only beings capable of preserving the spirits of their ancestors and divine power in their bodies. The mboko bowl served as a place for oracles to store sacred white clay (kaolin). It was applied to the face of a soothsayer or ruler during rituals, enabling communication with the spirit world, purification, divination of the future, and legitimization of royal authority.

Congo, Africa, 1st half of the 20th century, h. 34 cm