22"Large Yombe original, carved, African, maternity/fertility figure with baby For Sale

Yombe maternity statues (Phemba) from Congo areiconic wooden sculptures of an idealized mother and child, symbolizing fertility, lineage continuity, and female power, often featuring distinctive elements like elaborate hairstyles (mpemba), scarification, inset eyes (glass/mica), filed teeth, and sometimes a regal bearing, representing elite women, ancestral mothers, or healers, used in rituals for fertility or honoring lineage. Key Characteristics & Symbolism: Material & Craftsmanship:Carved from wood, often with dark patina, featuring finely detailed scarification, inlaid eyes, and sometimes beads or paint. Figure:A noble, often youthful female, sometimes with a royal cap or elaborate coiffure, holding or nursing a child.

22"9"9"