Rediscovered Masterpieces of African Art. Foundation Dapper.

Gutes Exemplar; Einband geringf�gig berieben. - Aus der Afrika-Sammlung von Dr. H. J. Kolo� V�lkerkunde-Museum Berlin. - Mit Beilagen; darunter Abdruck einer alten Karte v. Westafrika. - Englisch. - . The mythology of the Tabwa, an ethnic group from Southeast Zaire can enable us to analyze the concept of prime object. Kyomba, the cultural hero of all Tabwa clans is said to have carried in his hair the essential inventions of Tabwa cultures, i.e. the seeds of the necessary plants, the fire (symbol of his political power), and the special basket to collect taxes (the symbol of his economic powers). Furthermore, by shaking his head and planting his hair he initiated agriculture. Kyomba is considered in Tabwa thought to be the ideal father, the ideal chief, the perfect lover and husband.2 By extension, he is also the ideal artistic model for every Tabwa artist asked to carve a new statue of a chief or an important ancestor. Kyomba is thus the archetypal model both on the mythical and artistic level. Each Tabwa statue representing chiefs of different Tabwa clans such as Tanga, Kiubwe, Tumbwe and Manda or other important ancestors can be analyzed as a more or less distant replica of Kyomba which has changed through numerous variations in the flow of time. The importance of Kyomba's coiffure in Tabwa mythic thought may explain the wealth and variety of hair styles on Tabwa statuary. An accurate chronology of the birth and flourishing of these various chiefdoms (a dynastic clock) can produce a useful time scale for the different styles. For Tabwa art, the archetype (prime object) would ideally be the most complete statue of Kyomba. Although this object no longer exists, the statues of the Kunga royal clan among the Boyo, just north of the Tumbwe, can illustrate this concept. Indeed, this famous group of statues may actually be early witnesses of a mixed Proto-Luba/Tabwa style which have been miraculously preserved. In the photo, (left-side photo) the owner of the statues has placed them in order of both their genealogical importance and chronology. The largest statue on the extreme left is the oldest and could then be a portrait of a mythical founding figure like Kyomba. Two other statues by the same artist, not represented in this photo and brought back to an Italian museum around 1900, and the third statue from the left on the photo, are very close replicas of the oldest statue (the prime object). � (Seite 15) // INHALT : TEXTS ----- PREFACE ----- Henri Lopes, writer ----- FOREWORD ----- Fondation Dapper ----- INTRODUCTION ----- Gerald Berjonneau and Jean-Louis Sonnery ----- FROM PRIME OBJECTS TO MASTERPIECES ----- Bernard de Grunne, ----- Doctor in Art History ----- PEOPLE OF THE WORD ----- Robert Farris Thompson, Professor of Art History at Yale University, USA ----- INDEX ----- Index of tribes ----- NOTES ----- Pierre Harter and Jean-Louis Sonnery ----- BIBLIOGRAPHY ----- Dominique Lacroze, Librarian at the ----- Fondation Dapper ----- EDITING STAFF ----- ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ----- PHOTOGRAPHS ----- The majority were taken by Gerald ----- Berjonneau For details, see photographic credits ----- Terra cotta ----- Metal ----- Ivories ----- Masks ----- Statuary ----- Environment ----- MAPS ----- Terra cotta regions ----- General map. ISBN 2905351063