104
Mbundu Staff Finials


- Country: Angola
- Source: Angola late 19th Century
- Size (cm): 16
- Material: Wood, brass
The Mbundu (Ovimbundu) homeland is centered on the Benguela Plateau, bordering to the east on Chokwe land.
Th finials are from staffs with female heads or figures which depict “nana yakoma”, the guardian of the holy fire – sacred objects of the old Ovimbundu chiefs. The Ovimbundu, also known as the Southern Mbundu, are a Bantu ethnic group who live on the Bié Plateau of central Angola and in the coastal strip west of these highlands.