A rare Mumbira musical instrument, the central object of an initiation ritual of the same name practiced by the Nyanga people. This instrument is said to evoke the "murmur of a small waterfall," in reference to a myth involving a bird and a crab caught in that same waterfall. This specimen of mumbira in David Henrion's collection is the third referenced today, significantly different (in terms of wood and carving) from the other two published, and whose origin and specific use (wind instrument with a wooden membrane) is described in a dedicated article by Daniel P. Biebuyck. See: Biebuyck, "Mumbira: Musical Instruments of a Nyanga Initiation" in African Arts, 1974, vol. VII, pp. 42 and 43, no. 4. See: for another Mumbira instrument from the D. Biebuyck collection in the Christie's Paris sale on March 8, 2023, no. 61. Nyanga, Democratic Republic of Congo Hardwood, beads, slight traces of polychromy, visible age cracks, beautiful and old patina from use. H.: 32.5 cm Provenance: Didier Claes, Brussels David Henrion Collection, Brussels