Royal Female Figure

Mangbetu Peoples, D.R. Congo

Material: brass

H: 24 in

W: 9 in

D: 9 in

Most Mangbetu art was reserved for ruling class and was secular in nature. Bronze and brass figures are believed to be ancestral portraits, and were kept in royal court. Examples of their crafts include intricately forged chains and knives with carved ivory handles.

The Mangbetu had a distinctive look and this was partly due to their elongated heads. At birth the heads of babies were tightly wrapped with cloth in order to give their heads streamlined look. The funnel-shaped look coiffure hairdo, originally symbolic of high social status, was considered exceptionally attractive, with ivory decorated pins, such as this brass queen mother figure shown here.