Byeri Fang From Gabon

Eyema Byeri reliquary guardian statue in wood with a crusty patina, shiny in places caused by its long ritual use In the style of the Ntem Masters of Gabon, this sculpture of great modernity and cracked in places (look at the photos carefully) height 53, 5 cm plus wooden base 57cm. Well-typed proportions, typical hairstyle, low eyelids, grimacing mouth, hands joined on the thorax, apparent male sex, are the criteria corresponding to the canons of the artists of the Ntem plateau. Tradition reports that the Byeri statuettes were commissioned from sculptors known for their skill, the Beba or Mba, masters of wood and holders of all the know-how necessary to transform them into "images" of the sacred. It was important for the prestige of the customers, that is to say the heads of lineage, that the statuettes were made by renowned Be-ngan (this term designates among the Fang the soothsayers-healers. provenance; collection Maud and René GARCIA neat and free shipping