Crucifix 16th-17th century

brass, sculpture

3d sculpting

3d model

brass

rounded shape

sculpture

sculptural image

unrealistic statue

3d shape

sculpture

3d modeling

structured

statue

This 16th-17th century bronze crucifix from the Kingdom of Kongo is a powerful testament to the artistic fusion that occurred during the early days of European contact with Africa. The crucifix, featuring a stylized Christ figure and flanked by praying figures, showcases the integration of Christian iconography with indigenous artistic traditions. The elaborate details on the cross, including a serpent motif, reflect the Kongo's own beliefs and mythology, revealing the complex cultural exchange that shaped this unique artwork. Kongo crucifixes, like this one, are a significant example of the cultural syncretism that emerged in the wake of colonialism, offering insight into the enduring spirit of the Kongo people in the face of foreign influence.

Comments

minneapolisinstituteofart about 1 year ago

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The Kingdom of Kongo, in central Africa, officially became Christian in the late 1400s, after the baptism of its king. This opened the door to Catholic missionaries, and the Christian ideas and icons that began circulating through the kingdom soon found their way into Kongo art and religious thought. The crucifix was the foremost of these icons, a potent symbol of the new faith that happened to mirror the indigenous “cosmogram,” a cross-like symbol conveying the Kongo concept of a two-way passage between the world of the living and the world of the dead. These two crucifixes were powerful aids to piety and ritual. One was attached to a wooden cross, now missing, while the other is made entirely of metal. The small figures in postures of prayer on the cross-bar and on the bottom of the cross are Kongo inventions, possibly representing mourners or ancestors.