Bakongo was the supreme god for all in the Kongo Kingdom, and the intermediary representations included land and sky spirits and ancestor spirits, all of whom were represented in nkisi objects.
When an individual encountered hardship and feared that a spirit had been offended, it would be necessary to consult a diviner (nganga), who would often instruct the afflicted to add medicines to certain nkisi in order to achieve well-being. Although the Portuguese attempted to Christianize the Kongo peoples as early as 1485, for the most part people either resisted entirely or incorporated Christian iconography into their own African religions.
- 55cm Tall
- 15cm width