1969.S.27 Seated male power figure (nkisi)

All power figures (minkisi; sing. nkisi) are containers for consecrated substances, or "medicine," that empower them to protect, heal, or destroy. Such medicines are packed into body orifices or within a visible medicine pack on the torso that is sealed with a mirror. The postures and gestures of minkisi are meaningful.

 

This nkisi power figure of a man touches his face in a contemplative gesture and leans forward with his legs arranged in the fu-mani position, a sign of caring, competence, and responsibility. The sculptor has carefully and realistically depicted the nkisi's prestigious knotted pineapple skullcap (mpu) and the jewelry he wears on his wrists and upper arms. The figure probably represents a chief, but perhaps a healer and/or diviner as well.

The medicine that empowers this nkisi is hidden in the cylindrical container projecting from his torso. The imported mirror sealing the cavity enables him to see which supernatural forces are active, and the glass eyes allow him to peer through water to otherworldly wisdom in order to solve the owner's pathological or spiritual problem.

n.d.: Clark and Frances Stillman Collection, Dallas, Texas/New York

1969: Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, gift of Eugene and Margaret McDermott [1]

[1] The name of the Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, founded in 1933, was changed to the Dallas Museum of Art in 1983.

Apply to objects where number equals 1969.S.27