Sceptre en ivoire, République Démocratique du Congo

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Découvert récemment dans une collection européenne, ce sceptre en ivoire s'impose d'emblée parmi les plus remarquables témoignages d'un corpus aussi éminent que restreint. 

C'est en 1998 que Raoul Lehuard (Art Bakongo, Insigne de pouvoir. Le sceptre) identifia le sceptre en ivoire à la fois comme le symbole du chef suprême mwe et comme le plus illustre regalia des peuples Kongo longeant la rive septentrionale du fleuve éponyme. À l'agencement codifié des personnages répond l'extraordinaire expressivité des visages et des gestes, accentuée par le foisonnement des détails, par la densité des images étroitement enchevêtrées et l'extrême raffinement de leur traitement. Siégeant en majesté, le chef tient les symboles de son pouvoir (sceptre et racine de munkwisa portée à la bouche), tandis que l'auriculaire recourbé sur les autres doigts de la main gauche illustre l'attitude appelée kanga kolo, signe de conjuration et d'interdépendance entre chacun des membres de la communauté (Lehuard, idem, p. 932). 

Si son nom vernaculaire nkama ntinu le lie littéralement à la "première épouse du roi"  –  et donc au " matrilignage duquel tout le groupe est issu et auquel il s'identifie" (Lehuard, idem, p. 930) –, l'interprétation iconographique s'avère complexe lorsque le sceptre associe au chef investi le thème, rarement illustré (sept sur une centaine de sceptres connus), de la "femme à l'enfant" (première épouse ? tenant un enfant, un jeune adulte ou un captif ?). Marc Felix (2011, vol. 2, p. 56-58) en souligne le mystère, s'ajoutant à celui de la collecte relativement tardive (milieu du XX^e siècle) de l'essentiel de ce corpus. Précieusement conservés par leurs détenteurs, ils furent, à partir de 1907, d'abord associés à des "fétiches de guerre" (cf. lot 6), puis communément à des manches de chasse-mouches. Ici, l'iconographie de même que la qualité de la sculpture et de sa patine suggèrent une appartenance au style dit "classique", que Marc Felix situe entre la fin du XVII^e siècle et la fin du XVIII^e siècle (idem, p. 72-74). Voir Felix (idem, p. 72, n° 609) pour un sceptre stylistiquement très apparenté. 

Kongo ivory sceptre, Democratic Republic of the Congo

Recently discovered in a European collection, this ivory sceptre immediately stands out as one of the most remarkable specimens within its small and important corpus.

In 1998, Raoul Lehuard (Art Bakongo, Insigne de pouvoir. Le sceptre) identified the ivory sceptre as both a symbol of the supreme mwe leader and as the most important piece of regalia of the Kongo peoples, who live along the northern shore of the eponymous river. The codified arrangement of the figures echoes the extraordinary force of expression of the faces and gestures, which in turn is enhanced by the abundance of detail, the density of the tightly interlocked images and the extreme refinement of their carving. The leader sits enthroned, and holds in his hands the symbols of his power (a sceptre and a munkwisa root that he holds up to his mouth), while his little finger bent on top the other fingers of his left hand demonstrates the so called kanga kolo attitude, a sign of conjuration and interdependence between each member of the community (Lehuard, ibid, p. 932). 

Although his vernacular name, nkama ntinu, is a literal link between him and the "first wife of King"  – and thus with the "matrilineage from which the whole group is derived and with which it identifies" (Lehuard, ibid, p. 930) –, the iconographic interpretation proves more complex when the sceptre is associated with the more rarely seen theme (only seven out of approximately a hundred known sceptres) of the "woman with child" (first wife? holding a child, a young adult or a captive?). Marc Felix (2011, vol. 2, p. 56-58) points out its inherent mystery, which is further compounded by the relatively late date of collection (mid-20^th century) of most of this corpus. Preciously kept by their owners, they were primarily associated with "war fetishes", from 1907 onwards (cf. lot 6), and then commonly considered as fly-whisk handles. Here, both the iconography and the quality of the carving and patina tend to place it within the "classic" style that Marc Felix dates between the late 17^th century and the late 18^th century (ibid, p. 72-74). See Felix (ibid, p. 72, No. 609) for a sceptre with very closely related stylistic features.