ALUNGA MASK WITH TEXT
I’m be-grieved to have lost so many other masks from the African continent in the crash... Not only are they aesthetically striking, a selection are actually able to invoke spirits, such as this one.
This particular mask is from the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. This particular society of humans called themselves Bembe, and further divided themselves into a number of fraternities and secret societies - such congregations seem like a commonality among humans, I’ve noticed... today more prominent in North America, but I can assure you’ve I’ve found no artifacts of worth from those societies.
But I digress - There was the Batee Brotherhood of Sorcerers, the Banya Brotherhood of healers… these societies were either of professional or religious nature. Religious societies were closely associated with the Spirits of Nature.
One such secret society, specifically a hunting cult, called the Kalunga (which, not coincidentally, also happens to be the name of the land of the dead), was devoted to appeasing the forest spirit, Alunga. When embodied by the wearer of the mask, Alunga manifests itself with the attributes of owls, and other masters of darkness. This particular mask is also painted with snakes, a symbol of creation and seen as a mediator between the land of the living and the dead.
Though its main use was in the group’s ceremonies and rituals, outside of this context, the mask and the power of the spirit behind it was used to instill terror in uninitiated onlookers and to assert power in the public sphere.
Which, now that I think about it, is not a bad strategy...