Bulu or Fang Power Figure

Bulu or Fang people, mid. 20th century, Beti-Pahuin, Cameroon or Gabon, Central Africa

Impressive and highly unusual wooden power figure carved entirely from a single log in the form of a stylised casket, standing on four stubby legs, with finely sculpted ovoid heads emerging at both ends. The expressive facial features—almond-shaped slit eyes pierced with long rusty nails, large ears, elegant noses, refined coiffures, horizontal scarifications, and delicately open mouths revealing filed teeth—are rendered with striking intensity and spiritual force.

The upper mid-section of the casket contains a crudely carved rectangular cavity coated with a dense layer of white kaolin clay, originally sealed with a piece of mirror (now lost). Embedded within this cavity are potent ritual materials—hammered roof nails, cowrie shells, fabrics, kaolin, seeds, vertebrae, and a monkey skull—forming a concentrated assemblage of sacrificial and medicinal substances. The dual heads and four nail-studded eyes enhance its vigilance and potency, enabling the figure to act on behalf of the ritual specialist. Resin- or clay-bound medicines placed across the surface further empowered the figure in its protective and divinatory functions.

The Fang and Bulu peoples believe in a mighty and eternal creator god, Mebe’e (or Mebere), who brought forth the first ancestor, Ndzame (or Sekome), originally formed as a lizard and transformed into a man. The creator god is understood through three interrelated aspects—Ndzame, Mebe’e, and Nkwa—who consulted together during the creation of the world and humanity.

To navigate the challenges of daily life, both Fang and Bulu communities maintain the powerful ancestral cult of byeri and uphold complex systems of secret societies such as the So, Gil, and Ngi (or Nji among the Bulu). The Ngi/Nji society venerates great apes—especially mandrills and gorillas—as embodiments of fire, vigilance, and positive spiritual force. Ngi was believed to guard moral order: punishing transgressions with illness while rising at night to battle sorcerers who roamed the forest seeking to harm the living.

This figure, with its dual visages, ritual cavity, and dense accumulation of sacred materials, is a rare and compelling example of such protective spiritual technology.

Good condition. Age-related heavy wear and extensive handling over many years. Old corroded wood with wormholes, fractures, chips, and cracks. Lovely encrusted patina throughout. Size approx. 56cm x 13,5cm x 14,5cm.

Provenance: Dutch private collection

References and further reading:

Fang Religious Experience - Bwiti. An Ethnography of the Religious Imagination in Africa, J. W. Fernandez, Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1982.

A Masterwork That Sheds Tears... and Light: A Complementary Study of a Fang Ancestral Head, Roland Kaehr, UCLA James S. Coleman African Studies Center. 40, pp. 44–57 (https://www.jstor.org/stable/i20447849)