Slit Gong

A very rare 19th century slit drum from the Congo. A powerful sculptural object it almost looks cast in bronze. The British Museum has one described as Teke? and another Batanga. The “Teke” is from the Wellcome collection and the other came from Sir Augustus Wollaston Franks. A note attached to his reads “Mr Lovibond brought a much larger drum of this kind from Batanga, West Africa, which he offered to sell to Mr Franks in 1872. It was 2ft 9ins long, 17 ins high and 13 1/2 ins long. Mr L. said it is named ‘druma’, is used by the chiefs, and he believed is made in the interior by one of the bush tribes, perhaps by the Usheba.”
A later suggestion added to the slip is Tanda, Ubangi River, Congo.

D.R.C.

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