Kakongo artist. <em>Power Figure (Nkisi Nkondi)</em>, 19th century, with 20th century restoration. Wood, iron, glass, resin, kaolin, pigment, plant fiber, cloth, 33 7/8 × 13 3/4 × 11 in. (86 × 34.9 × 27.9 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Museum Expedition 1922, Robert B. Woodward Memorial Fund, 22.1421. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: , 22.1421_overall_PS9.jpg)

Kakongo artist. Power Figure (Nkisi Nkondi), 19th century, with 20th century restoration. Wood, iron, glass, resin, kaolin, pigment, plant fiber, cloth, 33 7/8 × 13 3/4 × 11 in. (86 × 34.9 × 27.9 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Museum Expedition 1922, Robert B. Woodward Memorial Fund, 22.1421. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: , 22.1421_overall_PS9.jpg)

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What's this sculpture about?

That is a Nkisi Nkondi (a Power Figure) from the Democratic Republic of the Congo....

One artist carves the piece and a diviner (ritual expert) would put a secret formula of ingredients into the cavities in the belly and the back of the figure. The mirror obscures our ability to see within the cavity and the reason for that is because only the diviner who fills it knows what is inside. Its also believed to be porous so that the forces contained inside can emanate out. The community can ask or tell the spirit of the ancestor to aid them in various situations.

For example, if there is a confrontation in the community, important members of the community come to together with those in conflict before the figure. The nganga (the person responsible for keeping the judicial harmony of the community) then places a nail or blade into the body of the figure to invoke or provoke the ancestor's spirit. Some describe the nails almost like a binding agreement, or promise.

If you look closely, you can see how each of the nails are different - some are very old and handmade and some are new and machine-made. The nails are indicative of changes in the market, a larger sociopolitical environment of the time (the presence of Belgian colonials and access to manufactured goods). You can read the history of the object through the evidence of it's use through time. It is quite a powerful piece. Also, the figure's pose, with hands on hips and head turned up, symbolizes its readiness to defend the righteous and to destroy enemies.

Why are the nails in the figure different shapes?

The nails are different shapes and sizes. Some are manufactured and machine made, and others appear to be hand made. This actually reflects how the object was used, and that it was used by a community over time. The nails are also indicative of changes in the market, a larger sociopolitical environment of the time (the presence of Belgian colonials and access to manufactured goods). This was a figure that was used within the community by a diviner (ritual expert) as this figure embodied the power or spirit of an ancestor. It could be used to resolve conflicts within the community; an agreement would be made and the nail pounded into the power figure by the nganga (who was responsible for keeping the judicial harmony of the community) functioned as a way to invoke the spirit - like releasing the power of the spirit - to bind the agreement.

Specifically, the power figure was an object that was used within a community and each of the nails would have been placed in the body of the power figure by the nganga ( the person who was responsible for keeping the judicial harmony of the community). The nganga could recall which nail was associated with which invocation. The nails were placed in the body to release the power of the ancestor. It was believed that the object was imbued with the spirit and power of an ancestor.

Scholarship focused on the Power Figure are theories since it is longer used. Some scholars have suggested that long, iron, round, or square nails may have been used for more serious crimes such as murder or to seal an argument with a solemn vow. Rectangular blades may represent less serious crimes. Blades with flared heads may have been believed to have power to kill supernaturally, and other items like screws were used for other types of conflicts. Some nails have rags or hair wrapped around them so that the nganga (who was responsible for keeping the judicial harmony of the community) could recall which nail was associated with which invocation.

Why are there nails in it?

This is a power figure made by a Kongo artist. These figures are meant to serve communities, helping to fight evil forces and offer protection. Each time a nail is driven into the figure, the figure is activated and called forth to help. Judging from how many nails and blades are here, this figure has done a lot of helping.

These works are actually "made" by several different people. There is a professional woodcarver who carves it, and later a nganga (a ritual expert) places spiritually powerful materials in the belly of the figure to give them power.

Power Figure (Nkisi Nkondi)

Arts of Africa

On View: Special Exhibitions, Egyptian Galleries, 3rd Floor

This nkisi nkondi (power figure) is missing the magico-religious materials that transformed it into a vessel for a spirit. Kongo people used minkisi (singular, nkisi) for various purposes. The nkondi type generally “hunted” witches and wrongdoers. Carved by sculptors, minkisi hosted spirits only after banganga (priests) placed substances inside to empower them. Like the nearby figure of Ity-sen, this sculpture appears to have been intentionally damaged to disempower it. Empowering materials were likely removed from its head, torso, back, and eyes by someone aware of their meaning. New research conducted for this exhibition suggests it was disempowered before leaving Africa. European colonial officials feared minkisi, and felt they could dominate the Kongo region by confiscating them. But Kongo people sometimes took back control by disempowering minkisi before they were taken. So Europeans did not actually seize powerful “fetishes,” only wooden sculptures. Through this research, we now re-present this work as an example of Kongo anti-colonial resistance.

How do we know this? New research on a Kongo nkisi nkondi

This nkisi (power figure) is missing the empowering material from the top of its head, eyes, and stomach and back containers. New research conducted by this exhibition’s curator suggests this work was disempowered before leaving Africa. Close examination was made of the museum’s historic photographs, conservation records, and the work itself. Primary and secondary sources about Kongo art were also consulted. Thus, we can now re-present this work as an example of Kongo anti-colonial resistance.

Visible today, the back container lacks its mirrored cover and (most of) the organic substances that once were inside. The large mirror-covered container on the front was also missing when the Brooklyn Museum bought the sculpture in 1922 (see photo 1). The photograph also shows that the glass covering the left eye was partially missing, along with most of its resin “eyelid.” Because empowering materials often were placed behind an nkisi’s eyes, this implies that someone knowledgeable tried to remove them.

The mirrored container first appeared in a 1936 photograph, suggesting it was restored with a differently shaped replica (see photo 2). X-rays show that the front container is empty. Tests by Brooklyn Museum scientists also showed that the container was attached and painted with plaster; resin and kaolin clay would have been used in Kongo. In the 1920s, museums commonly restored “missing pieces” of works across collections. Here flaking kaolin clay was removed and the surface was smoothed, a museum practice common for African sculptures during the period.

During the colonial era, Africans actively protected their own cultures. Iconoclasm was one way to exercise their agency, removing the magical-religious substances that empowered nkisi. Archival information shows that nkisi now in the collections of other museums were subject to similar acts of iconoclasm: Kongo priests and others deactivated power figures before Europeans confiscated them.

CULTURE Kakongo artist

MEDIUM Wood, iron, glass, resin, kaolin, pigment, plant fiber, cloth

Possible Place Made: Kongo Central Province (former Bas-Congo), Democratic Republic of the Congo

DATES 19th century, with 20th century restoration

DIMENSIONS 33 7/8 × 13 3/4 × 11 in. (86 × 34.9 × 27.9 cm) mount: 34 × 14 × 12 in. (86.4 × 35.6 × 30.5 cm) (show scale)

COLLECTIONS Arts of Africa

ACCESSION NUMBER 22.1421

CREDIT LINE Museum Expedition 1922, Robert B. Woodward Memorial Fund

CATALOGUE DESCRIPTION Image of a man, stuck with nails and knives. Mirror in navel. Free carved feet standing on a block. Hands at hips. Stained white in most parts. Four flat pronged high headdress. Open mouth with teeth and tongue showing. Bracelets around biceps. Condition: Good

EXHIBITIONS

MUSEUM LOCATION This item is on view in Special Exhibitions, Egyptian Galleries, 3rd Floor

CAPTION Kakongo artist. Power Figure (Nkisi Nkondi), 19th century, with 20th century restoration. Wood, iron, glass, resin, kaolin, pigment, plant fiber, cloth, 33 7/8 × 13 3/4 × 11 in. (86 × 34.9 × 27.9 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Museum Expedition 1922, Robert B. Woodward Memorial Fund, 22.1421. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: , 22.1421_overall_PS9.jpg)

IMAGE overall, 22.1421_overall_PS9.jpg., 2019

"CUR" at the beginning of an image file name means that the image was created by a curatorial staff member. These study images may be digital point-and-shoot photographs, when we don\'t yet have high-quality studio photography, or they may be scans of older negatives, slides, or photographic prints, providing historical documentation of the object.

RIGHTS STATEMENT Creative Commons-BY

You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this three-dimensional work in accordance with a Creative Commons license. Fair use, as understood under the United States Copyright Act, may also apply. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply). For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.

RECORD COMPLETENESS

Not every record you will find here is complete. More information is available for some works than for others, and some entries have been updated more recently. Records are frequently reviewed and revised, and we welcome any additional information you might have.

Download our app and ask your own questions during your visit. Here are some that others have asked.

What's this sculpture about?

That is a Nkisi Nkondi (a Power Figure) from the Democratic Republic of the Congo....

Why are the nails in the figure different shapes?

Why are there nails in it?