Large Decorative Pot: Mangbetu

The Mangbetu tribe live in North Eastern Congo. The people of this tribe produced a large variety of highly developed art and music, such as harps, guitars, pots, and other crafts. Their pots are still prominent in today’s art spectrum, and ones that have been constructed in the early days of the tribe are sold to collectors and people alike for high prices. Mangbetu women and men make their pots and jars using relatively coarse-textured clay entirely by hand, either by building the clay up in rings or using a variation of the hammer-and-anvil technique. They mold the heads and figures on the openings and handles, while the patterns on the surface are carved using small tools, such as shell scrapers and wooden roulettes. After the pottery is formed, they are fired in open bonfires. 
The figure is representative of their coiffure and head shape as children's head were elongated by wrapping them tightly in cloth. This practice began dying out in the 19050's. 
It is approx. 27" high and 7" wide and quite heavy. While solid now, it has extensive repairs. While I can make no representation as to its age, it is of the style from the early 20th century.