Guardian of the Ancestors, Bakota Reliquary Figure

Kota · 19th century

Details

Details
Dimensions	Height 18 cm (7⅛ in)Width 8 cm (3⅛ in)
Country	Gabon More about Country Gabon, Central Africa. The Kota-speaking groups live mainly in the east of the country, in the Ogooué-Ivindo and Haut-Ogooué provinces, and across the border in the Republic of the Congo.
Tribe / Culture	Kota More about Tribe / Culture The Bakota (Kota) peoples of eastern Gabon and the neighbouring Republic of the Congo created some of the most striking sculpture of Central Africa. Their reliquary figures, known as mbulu ngulu, stood watch over bark baskets and bundles that held the revered remains of lineage ancestors.
Age / Period	19th century

Symbolism & Iconography

Over 150 years ago in Gabon, this figure had one job: to guard the bones of the ancestors. A reliquary is a container for the remains of the dead. Kota families kept the skulls and bones of their most honoured ancestors in a basket and fixed a figure like this one on top to protect them from evil. Its name, mbulu ngulu, means “image of the dead”.

Brass was a precious metal in 19th-century Central Africa. The figure was polished so that its shine would keep harmful spirits away. Brought out at important ceremonies, it showed how powerful and respected its family was.

Aesthetic & Formal Analysis

The oval face is covered in brass. Ribbed horizontal strips fan out on either side of a central band set with raised bosses and a lozenge, above two domed eyes and a long, narrow nose. A short brass-wound finial rises from the top of the head.

Below the face, a neck wrapped in brass bands meets a dark wooden shaft set with small brass studs. Diamond patterns cover the back, crossed by a brass band with raised studs. The base is open: it was tied to the basket holding the ancestors’ bones.