MO.1995.16.1
Pel ambish, Kweetngom. Koninklijke trommel / Tambour royal / Royal drum. Mushenge, Kasaï, RD Congo. [Kuba]. 1939-1969. Wood, hide, cowries, glass beads, metal, red pigment. Purchase from Nyimi Mbokashanga. 1995. MO.1995.16.1.
A recent addition
This royal Kuba drum was added to the Museum’s collection in 1995. The drum was bought directly from King Nyimi Kwete Mbokashanga, together with nine other objects which the king had brought to Belgium during a stay in Europe. For many years, the Nyimi had contact with the Museum’s curators, to whom he would have repeatedly suggested the sale of this drum. It was eventually purchased in June 1995.
Exporting Congolese artefacts
In March 1971, the Congolese state passed a law making an export certificate mandatory for antiques. The law, which was difficult to apply from the start, was even easier to circumvent during the deep political crisis of the 1990s. Although no export certificate has been found for this drum, the Nyimi signed a purchase agreement on 8 June 1995.
At the time, the sale was justified by those in charge of the institution on the basis of two criteria: the enrichment of the collections, as there was no equivalent in the Museum; and the important cultural value (artistic and especially historic) of the object. It is all the more astonishing, therefore, that there is not a single reference to Congolese law, nor any reflection on the ethical considerations of this transaction concerning an important heritage object.