This remarkable object, a basket with a
deconstructed anthropomorphic figure emerging
from within, is a reliquary assemblage made by
the Kota people of Gabon. It is a gourd-shaped
basket, the opening of which is partially blocked
with raffia and the slim neck of the central
figure. The face is high and domed, with the
widest point across the temples, and is
completely covered in sheet brass. There is a
long strip connecting the forehead and the chin,
and the details of the nose and mouth are
embossed into it. The eyes are round and domed.
Detail is otherwise limited.
The Kota live in Eastern Gabon, and are
comprised of various subunits including
Ndambomo, Mahongwe, Ikota-la-hua, Sake,
Menzambi and Bougom, some of which can also
be differentiated artistically (see below). Their
society is largely egalitarian and gerontocratic,
their economy based upon hunting and
agriculture. Their relaxed social structure reflects
their previous mobility – they moved into the
area from the North during the 18th century –
which is also perhaps the cause behind their
unusual mortuary rituals in which they were
basically able to take their ancestors with them
wherever they went. It is also reflected in the
comparatively small number of large items in
their cultural repertoire, as transporting unwieldy
items would have posed logistical problems.
The Kota originally exposed their dead, but
started to bury them following influence from
neighbouring groups. The remains (especially
skulls) of prominent personages were then
exhumed and placed into baskets (Bwete), which
were defended by carved figures decorated with
metal plates or wire. These figures diversified
according to the geographical distribution of the
subgroups, and together they are among the
most famous and recognisable symbols of
African art. Their radical deconstructivism of the
human form had an enormous influence on the
20th century development of Western art styles,
and exert a powerful fascination to historians of
African art.
There are six forms, based around the
proportions of the face, the nature of the
wire/plate metal and the superstructures, such
as headpieces or superfluous decoration. By
being covered primarily with strips of brass
(probably originally cut from colonial food
plates), with round, domed eyes and a simplified
face shape, it most probably belongs to the
Shamaye style. According to some sources,
baskets such as this were often furnished with a
large and small guardian, the former
representing the ancestor, the smaller his
descendents. Almost all Kota pieces are rare as
many traditional practices – including
masquerades and the reliquary system – have
been either suppressed or have gone out of
fashion. To compound matters, many older items
were intentionally destroyed in the 1940’s to
1960’s by the “Culte de Demoiselles”, who went
out of their way to destroy traditional culture in
an attempt to mimic western lifestyles.
This is a dramatic and impressive piece of African
art.
