Central African Republic · Wood / Hardstone Carving (musical instrument-making)
Kundi (also kende, the Zande bow harp); ngombi (the arched harp with carved sculptural resonator, per broader Central African usage); mbela (a distinct Ngbaka arched mouth-resonated musical bow)
The construction of the kundi (or kende), a bow harp of the Zande people of the Central African Republic, and the closely related ngombi arched harp of the wider region, alongside the Ngbaka people's distinctive mbela musical bow. The kundi consists of a violin-shaped wooden soundbox covered in animal hide, a curved neck fitted with five tuning pegs, and taut strings made from creeper (vine) fiber, crafted by skilled artisans from forest woods and plant materials. The related ngombi arched harp features a hollow wooden resonator covered in snakeskin for amplification, a projecting shelf specifically carved with symbolic decoration -- often sculptural female figures -- and strings of vegetable fiber tuned via wooden pegs, holding deep cultural significance in ritual contexts as a means of facilitating communication with ancestors and embodying ideals of beauty and the sacred. The Ngbaka people separately construct the mbela, an arched piece of wood (typically a branch) strung with a single taut string, held before the musician's mouth, which serves to amplify and modulate the tone when the string is struck; instruments of this basic type are sometimes considered among the oldest ancestors of all string instruments, and the Ngbaka mbela is specifically used for ritual purposes by Ngbaka huntsmen of the Central African Republic's forests. A dedicated 1970 ethnographic documentary film, 'The Ngbaka Musical Bow,' produced with CNRS (French National Centre for Scientific Research) support, specifically documents the mbela's construction process alongside its ritual use.
Risk level: Endangered · Not independently inscribed
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