Southwestern Democratic Republic of Congo
Pende

Wood, cowrie shells, metal, 
Early-Mid 20th Century 
Length: 11 inches
Idiophone – Lamellophones – Plucked

Early well carved six-keyed (lamellae) Pende sanza. It shows a nice patina from usage and age.  The Pende people have many kinds of masks, an important component of public entertainment.  These masks are also danced to pray to ancestors, to heal a sick chief, or to protect their village during epidemics.  The finial on this Pende sanza resembles the gambanda among the eastern Pende and the mbuya jia muketu among the central Pende.  These types of mask represents the ideal beauty of a young female Pende.