African Tabwa Ancestor Figure

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African Tabwa Ancestor Figure, DRC, Zambia20x5x55lbsGreat smooth brown patina. Small cracks on belly and left side of head. Does not effect stability.Nice even carving of braids on head with scarification carvings. Toes are chipped. Stands okay. Woven cloth on top of head covering medicine. Used on chief altars or diviners altar. Democratic Republic of the Congo and Zambia The Tabwa people lived under Luba domination in small autonomous villages scattered within a territory that expanded from the southeast of the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the northeast of Zambia, along Lake Tanganyika. The verb "tabwa" means "to be tied up" and refers to when these people were taken as slaves. Today, they number 200,000 and are led by chiefs-sorcerers who rule over village chiefs and family chiefs. Their power is counterbalanced by male societies created on Luba prototypes and by female associations influenced by East African models. Traditionally, Tabwa people made their living from hunting and blacksmithing; nowadays they cultivate millet, manioc, cassava, beans, and corn, but they live primarily off fishing and hunting, for game is plentiful. The influence of Eastern Tanzanian neighbors on Tabwa art is seen in their use of linear geometric decorations, while their western neighbors, the Luba, influenced the incorporation of prestige read more

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