Jean-Jacques Rotthier Collection (1932–2009), Brussels, then by descent

Neyt (François), Arts traditionnels et histoire au Zaire/Traditional Arts and History of Zaire, Louvain-le-Neuve, Université Catholique de Louvain, 1981, p. 205, fig. X.5

These two Kongo-Dinga (lots 80 and 81) hammered copper masks belong to a particularly restricted corpus, of which only about a dozen examples are currently known, according to Rik Ceyssens (see Rik Ceyssens, Material and Formal Aspects of Copper Masks from the Upper Kasai, in Frank Herreman & Constantijn Petridis (eds.), Face of the Spirits. Masks from the Zaire Basin, Antwerp, 1993, p. 97). They are rare survivals of a tradition associated with ancestral authority. They were used during some of the most important moments in community life, notably on the occasion of a chief’s death and the enthronement of his successor.

Known as ngongo munene in the Dinga language, these masks are fashioned from hammered copper, a material imbued with profound symbolic and ritual significance. The use of copper evokes sacred authority and is closely associated with the spiritual power of the leader, or “master of the land,” of Tshikolondondo. As such, these masks functioned not merely as ceremonial regalia but also as potent expressions of political legitimacy and spiritual authority.

Their importance is illustrated by a series of photographs taken by Marie-Louise Bastin in 1956, showing Chief Tshikolondondo holding one of these masks, thereby underscoring its status as a privileged emblem of power and leadership.