Bellows - Luba People, Shankadi Group, D.R. Congo

This figurative bellows surmounted by a finely sculpted head was not only a critical component of blacksmithing, but was also a powerful symbol of the important connections between metalworking arts and sacred kingship. The blacksmith artisans used a bellows such as this to produce air in preparing fire to melt precious metals such as gold, brass, silver and bronze for royal ornaments.

The round chambers on the bellows would have been covered with animal hide. The skin would have enveloped a volume of air, which when compressed by a skilled blacksmith, would have forced the air out through the tubular passages to fan or stoke the fire. The heat would cause the metal to melt which was then forged or cast. Many African cultures viewed the manufacture of iron as a procreative process whereby the union of primal elements; earth, air, fire and water conceived iron as its offspring.

From our own personal collection!

Height: 23" x Width: 11 ½" x Depth: 5" - It is 26" tall on its 7 ¼" square stand.