Mahongwe Mask, Gabon, Equatorial African Tribal Art

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Seller: joburger63 ✉️ (1,508) 100%, Location: Marlo, AU, Ships to: WORLDWIDE, Item: 144848038879 Mahongwe Mask, Gabon, Equatorial African Tribal Art.

Item: Mahongwe Mask Specifications: 30 x 17.5 x 14.5 cm Origin: Gabon (see cultural and contextual notes below) Medium: Timber Carving & Pigment.


Shipping   African Origins ship dozens of international orders every week to every corner of the globe. We generally use Australia Post, a reliable, economic and fast service which also features online tracking. For multiple orders weighing over five kilograms we ship or via International Air Courier which also features online tracking. Please feel free to contact us directly with your country and zip code if you have any questions or special requirements regarding shipping or wish to obtain a quote for shipping to your area. We are happy to calculate combined postage quotes for multiple items.     Returns African Origins  sells tribal objects which have been used, in some cases, for many, many years. We ask that you carefully study the photographs relating to each object prior to committing to purchase. In the event that you are unhappy with your purchase for any reason, we accept refunds within seven days of purchase. We offer a full refund or a credit note valid for twelve months, which ever you prefer. Return postage is paid by the purchaser in all cases.     About African Origins   African Origins has been trading online since 2007. We are constantly on the look out for interesting objects to add to our collection.  Our tribal collection is sourced from tribal dealers,auction houses, private collections the world over and also collected in the field.. Where possible, we will specify the provenance of important individual tribal objects.   Feedback  

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The Mahongwe constitute the northern branch of the Kota peoples. They live in the extreme northeast of Gabon near the Republic of the Congo border. Numbering between 3,000 and 5,000 individuals, they have long remained apart owing to their obstinate resistance to the penetration of French administration.

The Mahongwe practice an ancestor cult (bwiti or bwete) that was at the center of a system of beliefs and rites and ancestor worship formed the core of the family group’s religious and social life. Fearful of the deceased the Mahongwe showed particular devotion to relics of important ancestors of the lineage, guarantors for the protection and survival of the group. At the death of a chief, the initiates would take from the body of the deceased various relics, which then decorated with metal and rubbed with powders of multiple magical powers. These relics, augmented by some “charms” and other power substances, were kept in woven rattan baskets upon which were arranged reliquary figures in wood plated with thin copper or brass strips, plates of wire.  It was believed that the sculls and bones of important men retained their power after death. Every Mahongwe clan has a reliquary kept in the back of the chief’s hut.

These relics were expected to protect and benefit the families that owned them. At the time of initiation in the reliquary cult, the clans would meet to perform communal rituals; each clan’s chief would dance holding the reliquary. Some reliquaries featured a large figure representing the lineage founder along with some smaller figures representing his successors.  Mahongwe reliquary figures consist of three distinct sections: the oval, concave face with projecting top knot, the cylindrical neck, and an openwork base. The mouth is missing. The heads of these remarkable abstractions are large and do not have upper or side pieces. The base is of lozenge form. They are considered dangerous to handle because of their role in former funeral rites, which have not been practiced for over sixty years. Mahongwe masks are rare.

  • Genre: African Tribal Art
  • Country: Gabon
  • Tribe: Mahongwe
  • Region: Africa
  • Product Type: African Tribal Figure

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