Yombe maternity figures

Phemba, also known as Yombe maternity figures, refers to sculptural objects that depict the figures of a mother and child. Phemba are iconic examples of Kongo art and reflect the degree to which women are treasured in Kongo culture, not just for their fecundity, but as seers and guardians of the spirit. Kongo societies trace their descent through the female line of ancestors.

In special cases, communities honored women by commissioning stone icons depicting a mother and child to be placed on their tombs. This was also considered dangerous, as it represented an insertion of the source of life - the mother - into the world of the dead.

Phemba statuary falls into two groups: mothers cradling or holding their babies, and mothers nursing.

The Kikongo word phemba denotes, in anthropologist John M. Janzen's words, 'the one who gives children in-potentia.' A phemba child is a magically conceived nkisi child, a fragile emissary of the spirit world." Oral tradition holds that the phemba cult was established by a famous midwife. The very different styles of phemba sculptures illustrate regional and even personal variations on the same theme.

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