Luba-Hemba, Rep. of Congo: An unusually large and old Janus figure, known as ‘Kabeja’.

The Luba-Hemba live in eastern Congo. Such two-headed Janus figures, known as ‘Kabeja’, represent the ancestor couple of a tribe. One head is female, the other male. The ‘Kabeja’ always belonged to a chief, who kept them in his house as a symbol of his power. ‘Kabeja’ were also viewed as figures of power for soothsayers, and as protective figures for the clan of which the chief was the representative. This is also apparent in the round vessels, carved out from the same piece, for ‘magical substances’, on the top on both heads. The present ‘Kabeja figure’ is unusually large and old. Carved in hard, brown wood in typical form, and coloured black. It displays a very old, thick, partly encrusted and shiny patina. With age-related damage: a loss on the vessel for 'magic substances', a crack on one side of the heads and on the neck, as well as smaller tears on the female side and at the bottom. Nevertheless, a rare ‘museum-quality’ piece. H: 48 cm; W: 25 cm. About 1900 or earlier.

Provenance: Jo Christiaens, Bruges, Belgium.

Lit.: 'Encyclopedia of African Art and Culture' by K.-F. Schädler, fig. p. 312, 389; 'The Tribal Arts of Africa' by Jean-Baptiste Bacquart, p. 160, fig. 4.