MANGBETU ARTIST

Slit Drum, nedundu

Uele Region, Northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo

Late 19th - early 20th Century

Wood with dark brown patina

Length 48 inches (122cm)

Height 20 ½ inches (52cm)

Provenance

Collection Monsieur H., (Agricultural Engineer), France, acquired in situ ca. 1950

Thence by descent

French Private Collection

Sotheby’s, Paris, Arts D'Afrique Et D'Océanie, 21 June 2017, Lot 29

New York Private Collection

"As instruments of prestige, these types of slit drums were also offered to prominent dignitaries by Mangbetu chiefs to bestow an authority upon them." (Burssens, Herman, Mangbetu. Art de cour africain de collection privées belges, 1992, p. 24)

Exceptionally carved from one piece of wood with a voluminous resonance box bellied outwards. The slit opening along the top edge, showing wear from prolonged use, terminates at each end with squared handles. The superb elegance of the lines and the minimalist form, juxtaposed with the monumental scale and hardness of the wood, are all hallmarks of this majestically sculpted work of art, unique to the Mangbetu tradition.