The 100,000 to 250,000 Lega inhabit
the virgin forest of eastern DRC, between the great lakes and the Lualaba
River, next to Luba people. The Lega do not possess a centralized political
organization, and both men and women aspire to moral authority by gaining high
rank in the bwami association. They live in the autonomous villages
collectively situated at the summit of a hill surrounded by a palisade. They
practice a mixed economy involving agriculture, hunting and fishing. Division
of labor is gender based and akin to the economic patterns of other tribes
living in the forest environment: men hunt and clear new land and women
cultivate manioc and other crops. The function of the bwami is to regulate the
social, religious, and political life of the Lega. It is conveying ethical
principles and establishing social norms. Circumcision was an indispensable
process that allowed entrance into the bwami. It was accompanied by the
teaching of proverbs and instruction in the handling of objects endowed with
moral and practical significance. The bwami was divided into several levels. To
pass to the next level, a series of initiations, gifts, and payments were
needed; and this meant that one had attained a certain wisdom and acquired a
personal moral sense. The great ceremonies organized for the accession to the
highest level would require that entire villages be constructed to house the
clan of the candidate and members of the other clans who often came from very
far away to participate in the festivities. The objects are frequently moved
around in various containers and grouped in large number for ceremonial
displays; for this reason, there is no large Lega art.
The statue has striking patina and age
cracks.
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