Female Statuette – Luba – Democratic Republic Of Congo – Early 20th Century Primitive / Tribal Art

Statuette depicting a young naked woman standing on a circular pedestal. Her rounded belly suggests motherhood, while her hands support her breasts in a gesture that is both nurturing and offering. Her knees are slightly bent, her shoulders straight, and her youthful face displays a beautiful, gentle expression. Three linear scarifications are visible in the center of her forehead. Her forehead is clear. She wears a carefully and harmoniously carved three-lobed headdress. Her lower back is adorned with scarifications carved in relief. Hardwood, old red and brown patina, signs of use, small losses on the edge of the forehead and on the base. Luba, Democratic Republic of Congo, early 20th century Dimensions: 13.5 x 4.3 cm – With base: 16 cm Provenance: former collection in northern France Sold with a certificate of authenticity from the expert Serge Reynes, guaranteeing origin and period. Sold with certificate from expert S. Reynes.*Shipping costs upon request. Among the Luba, female statuary embodies ideals of beauty, fertility, and transmission. The posture of this figure, hands placed on the breasts in a gesture of offering, evokes maternal generosity and the nurturing capacity of women, protectors of both the home and the community. This ritual gesture, found in certain figures of female dignitaries or ancestors, may also refer to the offering of knowledge and life force. The association between the full belly, the symbolic scarifications, and the elaborate hairstyle underlines the rank and function of this representation: a delicate evocation of youth, fertility, and spiritual authority.