Minneapolis Institute of Art

Ancestor figure

Beembe artist

Date

early 20th century

Medium

Wood, porcelain

Culture

Beembe

Department

Arts of Global Africa

Institution

Minneapolis Institute of Art

The knife and bottle (imported from Europe) are indications of authority, suggesting that this ancestor figure represents a high-ranking man, most likely a chief. The large feet—note the detailed toes—symbolize stability, while the small shards of white porcelain used for the eyes enhance the figure’s visionary power. Its true power, however, was hidden: the life force of the ancestor, imbued into the figure by inserting tiny remains of his corpse into a cavity near the rectum. Beembe, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Africa

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