A Magnificent Hemba Caryatid Stool, Democratic Republic of the Congo

Collected in situ by Pierre Dartevelle, 1972
Marcel Bronsin, Brussels
Merton D. Simpson, New York
Acquired from the above, 1985

New York, Museum for African Art, Memory. Luba Art and the Making of History, February 2 - September 8, 1996 (for additional venues see bibliography, Roberts 1996)
Los Angeles, UCLA Fowler Museum, Body Politics. The Female Image in Luba Art and the Sculpture of Alison Saar, November 12, 2000 - May 13, 2001

François Neyt, Luba, aux Sources du Zaire, Musée Dapper, 1993, p. 97
Mary Roberts, Memory. Luba Art and the Making of History, 1996, catalogue of the exhibition, p. 19 
Mary Nooter Roberts and Alison Saar, Body Politics : The Female Image in Luba Art and the Sculpture of Alison Saar, Los Angeles, 2000, p. 18, fig. 9
David Deroche, "Monumental Miniatures: The Saul and Marsha Stanoff Collection," Tribal Art, 32, Autumn, 2003, p. 66, fig. 10

The Hemba Caryatid Stool from the Stanoff Collection

Of outstanding quality, this caryatid stool is a testimony to the great mastership of Hemba sculptors during the golden century, when the most beautiful ancestor figures were carved. A voluminous eurhythmy is to be seen in the full and rounded shapes, which are supported by sharp and straight forms.

The ovoid head, delicately extended forward, evokes spiritual plenitude, superbly underlined by the facial features: the eyes like elongated almonds, slightly open, fit perfectly under the prominent eyebrows that meet on the bridge of the nose in a harmonious balance. The septum and sensual lips enhance the finesse of the face.  

Under the double arch of the diadem and the small ears that frame it, the ample volume of the coiffure splays backwards and gathers in a huge circular chignon, composed by a central knot holding small braids that radiate outwards. This composition fits in a quadruple circle holding together the bulk of hair. The circular form of the hair responds to the full and rounded volume of the face. The rhythm of the composition is created by the articulation between the curbed spaces and a cubical structure that can be seen from the front (for example from the seat to the elbows and breasts). These isometries reoccur throughout the whole composition allowing one to imagine the height of the stool before the base and lower limbs were destroyed.

The slender and conical neck expands and integrates the level of the shoulder, the top of the breasts, and the arms. Between her ample and tense protruding breasts, appears a prominent vertical scarification. Such a motif is common to this region and can be found on various other works. Another V-shaped cicatrix stretches across the bulging stomach on both sides of the lozenge-shaped navel. At waist level, a huge triangle composed of numerous small diamond-like shapes turns downward. It is surmounted by rectangular scarifications composed of two rows of three dots. The global signification is clear: the woman appeals to the spirits for more fecundity in her related clans.

The open lips of the genitals further illustrate this message; they are ready to receive. The buttocks encase the trunk’s bottom; the knees suggest a slight flexion. The present height of the stool is 18 in. (45.7 cm); the heavy, slightly reddish wood is covered with a dark patina, crusty in some places. It is characteristic of the Maniema area by the northern Hemba.

This work may be related to the atelier of the northern Hemba, whose caryatid stools are characterized by the standing posture of the woman, the carving of the seat, the position of the arms and hands, the hand’s palm turned frontward, the overall rhythm of the statuary, the cicatrices, and finally, the patina (see Neyt 1994: 96-105). This type of stool has been collected on the western bank of the Lualaba River, close to Lubunda, in Kusu territory. There exists a strong influence of the Luba and even the Kusu (in the way the coiffure is sculpted) on the Buli works in the Kankunde, Kateba, and Bugana Kalanga areas. This caryatid stool may have originated in this northern area of Buli influence, as it reflects the harmony of the great princes’ families from the banks of the Luika River, in what we have called the “style of the northern Hemba” (see Neyt 1977: 307 et seq., 490-495). The type of headdress in circular "chignon" is exceptionally rare, and seems to be located within this specific area. The Luba influence, however, remains significant.

In terms of age, this stool can be placed within a well-known historical context. During the reign of King Kumwimbe Ngombe (1810-1840), the prince Ilunga Buki was excluded from the royal court and exiled to the northern borders of the kingdom. He allowed his lieges to carve regalia, reserved only for royal families. On this occasion, the great families from north Katanga and the Maniema area developed their own ateliers, carving not only ancestor figures and Janus figures, kabeja, but also caryatid stools, scepters, and the like. These brilliant works were realized in ateliers active during the first half of the 19^th century.           

The fascinating beauty of this caryatid should not only be considered for its aesthetic aspects. The sculpture relates to the efficacy of the work; this female representation assures its status as bearer of initiatory secrets. The stool is intended as a metaphysical vessel for the spirits, vidye, and the more beautiful female forms it displays, the more inviting it becomes for the spirits. The woman serves as an intermediary between the power of the chief seated on the throne and the sources of its legitimacy – genies and ancestral spirits. The stool itself evokes the action of carrying. In the caryatid stools, the noble woman possesses the key to life-giving genies and spirits who hold authority over the prince. Magnified in the shadow of the political power, she watches over the prosperity of the country and the well-being of its inhabitants. Like a hymn to a female goddess, Hemba sculptures express the essential traditions of the Luba kingdom. Through divination, cults, renewal of the seasons, and political life, the Luba woman links the heights of starry skies to the depths of the earth below. 

François Neyt