Fang Harp

32. Ngombi (Harp) 19th century.

Fang, Gabon.

Ex German collection.

65cm long.

One of the most revered instruments used by followers of Bwiti, a 20th-century religious movement that blends indigenous ceremonial customs with Western Christianity, is the harp, or ngombi. The harp is a means of communication between the living and the dead and is symbolic of Nyingwan Mbege, also known as the Sister of God. An older male initiate known as Beti Ngombi, who is regarded as pure of heart and mind and who is essentially “married” to Nyingwam Mbege, plays it during every Bwiti ritual. Missing its neck which would have originally tensioned the strings.