Pende (Kasai / Eastern Pende) peoples, DRC. Serves as a chief's prestige status sculpture, channeling familial protection and validation for ruling lineages. The statue acts as an architectural representation of political power, often kept privately within a chief's ritual treasury house. The highly specific, four-cornered flared coiffure explicitly represents the Tundu or Kipoko royal chief's crown, a physical symbol of high nobility reserved for elite clan leadership. The enlarged head features heavily heavy, downcast coffee-bean style eyes, a wide nose, and a broad protruding jaw plane. The body displays a short neck dropping down to hunched, geometric shoulders, with both hands resting on the abdomen, which is marked by low-relief geometric chevron scarification patterns. Condition: Good vintage condition overall, featuring a mature, well-handled dark brown oiled patina across the wood grains with minimal surface erosion and light surface abrasions near the base ring and crown tips from traditional handling. Date: 20th century Dimensions: 11 x 4.5 x 4