Minneapolis Institute of Art

Crucifix

Kongo artist

Date

19th century

Medium

Brass

Culture

Kongo

Department

Arts of Global Africa

Institution

Minneapolis Institute of Art

The Kongo kingdom flourished from 1450 to 1700 as a vast, centralized African state on the Atlantic coast south of the equator. Christianity was adopted as a state religion at the end of the 15th century, and over the next 200 years Portuguese missionaries introduced crucifixes, devotional objects, and figures of saints, all of which were copied by Kongo artists. Incorporated into local religious practices that combined the two traditions, objects like this small crucifix were potent aids to piety and ritual. Democratic Republic of the Congo

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