A beautiful old statue of a Singiti ancestor wearing the emblematic cross-shaped headdress. Singiti male ancestor statues are memorial objects and commemorative portraits, contributing to the prestige of their owners while establishing and ensuring the memory of the lineage. They are the embodiment of a chief, a specific character on the Hemba nobility family tree, albeit idealized through an archetype. They must embody the strength of the chief, but above all stability, benevolence and wisdom, three qualities that are clearly evident in this work. It should be remembered that Jo Christiaens, from whom this work originally originated, had forged a special relationship of mutual respect with Dieter Scharf, so it was undoubtedly Jo Christiaens who supplied some of the finest and most important objects in the Scharf collection. Hemba, Democratic Republic of Congo Wood, characteristically missing at the bottom (woodborers), small age-related cracks, very fine old patina. H. 52 cm Provenance : Jo Christiaens Collection, Brussels Pierre Dartevelle, Brussels Collection Hilde and Dieter Scharf, Hamburg, acquired 1992 Publications and exhibitions: Sotheby's, New York, Important Tribal Art, May 10, 1988, no. 79 Bacquart, L'Art tribal d'Afrique Noire, 1998, p. 161, no. 9 Heymer and Thompson, Sehen lernen. Eine Sammlung afrikanischer Figuren, 1999, pp. 144-145, n° 57 Rochard, Figuren Afrikas. Meisterwerke einer Privatsammlung, 2002, pp. 136-137, no. 52, Ingelheim, Altes Rathaus, April 28 - July 7, 2002