Tsaye Mask (Teke)

Tsaye (Teke) mask. Democratic Republic of Congo, first half of the 20th century.
In carved wood.
Measurements: 43 cm. 53 cm. total height.
Mask made by the Teke ethnic group. Reduced to a circle with incisions that synthesize anthropomorphic features, the geometric line dominates over all figurative will, as it is usual in this type of magic-religious pieces.
Provenance: Pon's Collection (Europe), since early 1970s. Private European Collection, acquired from the above. On the back there is an old inscription in ink: "TekeTsayeMosemjo Congo", undoubtedly written when it was collected "in situ".