Vigango - Kenyan Funerary
Effigies
Artists Unknown
Vigango- Kenyan funerary effigies, all
sculptures are 20th century
Hardwood (muhuhu tree)
63 in.
Sweeney Art Gallery Permanent Collection
Gift of Peter Locke
91.3.26
The group referred to by Western Anthropologists as
the MijiKenda are known for their carvings of anthropomorphic memorial
posts, or Vigango (singular Kikango). These carved wood boards are
better represented as memorial markers placed for the deceased's spirit
(koma). The Vigango were not tombstones, they were placed around or
inside the family's dwelling, not at the grave. The zig zag patterns
carved in low relief on these sculptures are characteristic of the
style of the MijiKenda. The Vigango are usually geometric that is
further refined by the sharp angles that define the surfaces. The
Kikango figure is divided into sections which are freely adapted from
human form. The sequences of carved triangles suggest various interpretations:
the rib cage, the intertwining of ropes or snakes, and the snuff container
and chain worn around the neck by some elders, all make up triangular
patterns.
- Walter Rucker
