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Craft Techniques of Gabon

The Depository documents 4 techniques in Gabon; by risk level: 1 critically endangered, 3 endangered. Each record opens with a public summary; the full research record is free to view once registered.

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Stone & Gemstone Carving

  • Fang Byeri Ancestral Reliquary Guardian CarvingStone & Gemstone Carving · Endangered

    The single-piece hardwood carving of guardian figures and heads mounted atop bark reliquary boxes containing ancestral skulls, by the Fang peoples of northern Gabon, southern Cameroon, and Equatorial Guinea.

All stone & gemstone carving techniques worldwide →

Musical Instruments

  • Fang-Mitsogo Ngombi Arched Harp CarvingMusical Instruments · Endangered

    The carving of the ngombi, a sacred arched harp central to Bwiti religious practice among Gabon's Fang, Mitsogo, and related ethnic groups, carved from a single hollowed piece of lightweight wood -- traditionally cottonwood -- and covered…

All musical instruments techniques worldwide →

Woodwork & Carving

  • Kota Mbulu Ngulu Copper-Clad Reliquary Guardian CarvingWoodwork & Carving · Critically Endangered

    The carving and copper/brass sheet-cladding of reliquary guardian figures by the Kota, a Bantu ethnic group of the Ogooué-Ivindo province in northeastern Gabon, with related families living in neighboring Congo-Brazzaville and Cameroon.

All woodwork & carving techniques worldwide →

Mask, Puppet & Costume

  • Punu Okuyi Kaolin-Whitened Stilt-Dance Mask CarvingMask, Puppet & Costume · Endangered

    The carving and kaolin-whitening of okuyi (mukudji) masks by Punu carvers of southern Gabon, representing an idealized female ancestral spirit and worn exclusively by male members of the mwiri society during acrobatic stilt-dance…

All mask, puppet & costume techniques worldwide →