Kuba Ndop Royal Figure
The ndop is a carved wooden portrait figure of a Kuba king of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, showing the ruler seated cross-legged on a small platform. Each ndop was made for a reigning or remembered king and bears his personal emblem (ibol), a drum, a weapon, or a game board carved beside the seat, while the pattern of scarification on the torso identifies the individual monarch. The figures were kept in the sacred houses of the palace, guarded by the king's titleholders, and were brought out in ceremonies where they stood for the continuity of the throne. Despite the name, the ndop is