Of all the major African sculptural styles, Songye statuary is perhaps the most various and difficult to sub-classify.  Since the early 20^th century, scholars have attempted to establish a typology of Songye sculptural styles and regions.  The sprawling, decentralized range of the Songye people, as well as the itinerant nature of both the sculptors and their products have made the task all the more challenging, as documentary evidence of the location of a sculpture’s collection cannot be relied upon to indicate their origin, or the origin of the sculptor; there are known instances of sculptors moving from region to region, being commissioned by foreign courts or neighboring peoples, and of sculptures travelling hundreds of miles from their origins.

Therefore the few Songye styles which can be clearly established are particularly precious to art history.  Using the technique pioneered in European art history by the 19^th century art historian Giovanni Morelli and first adopted in the study of African art styles by the German scholar Hans Himmelheber, the analysis and comparison of sculptural traits allows for stylistic classification, with or without accompanying documentary information.  In very rare instances, a group of sculptures shares a set of traits so formally distinctive and strongly idiosyncratic that one must conclude that they are the creations of the same master sculptor.    Among the established hands in the Songye corpus, the so-called “Master of the Bulbous Copper Eyes” is perhaps the most distinctive artistic personality, and certainly among the greatest sculptural masters whose work survives.

In 1937, the Belgian art historian Frans Olbrechts arranged an exhibition of Congolese art at the City Festival Hall in Antwerp.  As Els de Palmanaer notes: “In the 1937-38 exhibition of Congolese art [at Antwerp] sixty-five objects were assembled which even then were representative of the various artistic traditions of the Songye peoples, who live in East Kasayi and bordering parts of Katanga and Kivu. […] Although Olbrechts […] distributed Songye works throughout the entire exhibition, it was nonetheless his intention to allow the visitor of 1937 to get to know one of the most interesting ‘transitional stylistic areas’ of the Belgian Congo.  The majority of the works from the Songye stylistic area ended up ‘as a bridge between the Kuba and the Luba peoples’, in the section of the Luba complex, which to Olbrechts meant ‘the stylistic area between the Great Lakes of the east and the Lomami in the west.’  Because he could not place the exact boundaries with certainty, Olbrechts included the peripheral Songye stylistic area in the core area of the Luba style – a division he regarded as temporary, for it was clear to him that in the future the Songye style would come to be identified as a separate entity.  […]  Most strongly represented were the male standing figures (mankishi), of which an impressive series was grouped on a rostrum.” (see Fig. 1)

At the center of this grouping was an impressive male power figure (see Fig. 2) of typical Songye form, with large feet atop an integrally-carved dome-shaped base, short powerful legs, the arms bent at right angles and held symmetrically at the sides, and the hands resting on either side of a swollen belly.  Distinguishing it from all but one of the other twelve figures displayed on the rostrum, this figure has a long, elongated neck covered with fourteen necklaces of blue and white beads, as well as a face showing an alert, animated expression made especially striking by the round, protruding, copper-covered eyes.  Collected by Gaston Heenen, the Belgian Governor of the province of Katanga, the figure was later acquired by the Royal Museum for Central Africa, Tervuren, in 1951 (inv. no. “RG 51.10.1”, see Neyt 2004: 162-3, fig. 126).

Several other sculptures in early collections bear a close resemblence to the Heenen Statue in Tervuren: a second figure in Tervuren (op. cit.: 166: fig. 128); a third in the Museum der Weltkulturen, Frankfurt (inv. no. "SN33702", op. cit.: 174, fig. 139); and a fourth in the Ethnographic Museum, Antwerp (inv. no. "AE 40.1.47", op. cit.: 164, fig. 127).  The most obvious features shared in common are the aformentioned lively facial expression and bulbous eyes made of copper.  The notable similarities also include an overall orange-blonde color to the wood, which although it is unusual in the Songye corpus, is present in all of these examples.  An open mouth with pointed corners, semicircular eyes in relief below the copper irises, a pronounced philtrum between the nose and lips, a projecting lower jaw, and finely-carved geometric hands and feet are also found in all of these statues.  These distinctive features are the hallmarks of a single master with a highly developed personal artistic style.

The Stone statue not only conforms perfectly to these sculptural principles, but is the apogee of the group.  It is of generally taller, more naturalistic, and aesthetically-pleasing proportions than the Frankfurt, Antwerp, and Tervuren examples.  The relative quality of the design and execution suggests that the Stone statue might be the work of this sculptor in a more mature phase.  It is undoubtedly the masterpiece of this major artist's œuvre and one of the finest Songye sculptures known.