Mbole Ofika hanging statue, DRC - Lot 73

Mbole Ofika hanging statue, DRC Depicted in a characteristic posture, legs bent, arms arched, hands on thighs, this figure with large animal ears represents a hanged man. Brown patina, kaolin residue 40 x 11 cm The Lualaba province was home to several closely related ethnic groups with similar associations. According to D. Biebuck, the Mbole are known for their statues of hanged men. Biebuck ,ofika . The lilwa, an association with dogmatic initiation rites, was in the habit of judging and sentencing to hanging those guilty of breaking the rules imposed. These offences ranged from murder to adultery, and included breaking the secrecy surrounding the lilwa. Disgraced, the bodies of the condemned received no funeral and were buried in the forest. It was during the ceremonies at the end of the initation, presided over by a notable isoya, that these statues were exhibited, presented lying on a litter.