Reliquary Figure

late 19th - early 20th century

Metallic surfaces bolster the appearance of this guardian figure. His presence wards off anyone venturing too close to family and clan relics. Flashing light adds to the impression of an abstract stare from a face whose features are far from realistic. Copper and brass are applied in wire, bands and flat sheets with incised details. Both metals come from European sources and were expensive mediums that announce the importance of this composition. The forms projecting from the top and sides of the face replicate the elaborate hairstyles of men in this region. Originally, the shoulders of his diamond shaped body would be connected to a basketry container that housed the bones of past ancestors. Reliquary ensembles were owned by individual families, kept in special rooms by the leader of the family, and given names for consultation about family matters in a cult known as bwete.
While the strong formal abstraction of such reliquary figures was admired, they have also been extensively replicated in the 20th century. The first example known to have been collected was acquired by a German explorer Oskar Lenz between 1874 and 1875 and resides in the ethnographic museum in Berlin. By the 1920s, colonial authorities, missionaries and anti-witchcraft movements had so condemned the bwete cult that it disappeared and such figures were discarded from use. How metal was applied has become a primary way to determine the authenticity of Kota figures. The methods employed on this example haven’t been employed for over a hundred years. Another reliquary, acquired in 1951, was put together with more recent nailed construction. Side by side analysis illustrates the abbreviated methods used to sculpt replicas.

Wood, copper and brass

23 3/4 x 11 1/2 x 2 1/4 in. (60.3 x 29.2 x 5.7 cm)

Gift of Dr. Oliver E. and Pamela F. Cobb

2014.3

Provenance: [Maitres Poulain et Le Fur auction in Paris on June 30, 1988]; purchased by Dr. Oliver E. Cobb, Seattle

Photo: Elizabeth Mann

Not currently on view

Resources

Published ReferencesArt Primitif sale catalogue. Paris: Poulin-Le Fur, Druout Estimations, 1988

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