Rare Metoko Female figure - Metoko - DR Congo
Are you interested in this item?This item is up for auction at Catawiki. Please click on "respond to advert" (orange button) to get redirected to the Catawiki website. Catawikiâs goal is to make special objects universally available. Our weekly auctions feature thousands of unusual, rare, and exceptional objects you wonât find in just any store. Rare Metoko Female figure, DR Congo H: 90 cm Metoko statuary is rare and little has been written to place these sculptures in their original context. According to Biebuyck (in Tervuren, and ), the sculptures belong to the political and religious Bukota society, whose structure is similar to the Bwami of the neighbouring Lega. Large full size statues were the exclusive property of its highest-ranking members and were evidence of their position and status. They were used during initiation rituals and also placed in the tombs of eminent initiates (ibid).The limited corpus makes the definition of stylistic regions or schools difficult. All the known figures are connected by similar aesthetics -in the vein of the neighbouring Lega, Mbole and Lengola statuaries- combining simplified forms, heart-shaped faces pared down to their essential lines, angular outlines and stippled body adornments. The offered statue is one of the most accomplished testaments to the startling modernity of the carver's eye. The balance of its' posture âbetween tension and repose - the rhythm of the outline - flat planes cutting across the apparent rotundity of its shapes- and the force of the face âwith its lozenge-shaped eyes and lack of mouth, make the figure stand out.     Read more