Ben Durham

The visit to the Museum of Anthropology was really eye opening as such a fantastic
resource is available right here on campus. The collection was extremely rich with
artifacts from all over the world, some still in very good condition despite dating back
several hundreds of years. The object I found most interesting was the Royal Masks from
the Kuba Culture whom inhabit lands in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
These masks are primarily made out of wood, some had metal copper plating on
them, but all of the masks had bead decorations and etched markings in the wood itself.
These masks in particular represent the mythological antagonist Bwoom, who is one of
the three principle characters in the origin story of the Kuba Kingdom. The story tells a
tale of Bwoom, the masked character, trying to steal the wife of the kingdoms founder
before the hero vanquishes him. To this very day the Kuba royal family funds these
performances to demonstrate their rightful place as political leaders, as their legacy is
claimed to go back hundreds of years. The description of Bwoom changes from one
performance to the other. However, he is frequently identified by the disease or injury
marked by his macrocephaly. His character symbolizes the status of an outsider which
links to the Mbuti culture that was pushed out of the area by the early Kuba Kingdom.
The Bwoom mask tells us a lot about the Kuba culture. First and foremost the
masks themselves are quite heavy and most have little to no visibility. I would assume
from this observation that the Bwoom mask would only be wore by a member of the
Kuba society who is prominent, knowledgeable with ritual, and has danced as the
Bwoom character before. Now taking a step back, realizing that an ostracized character in
a mythical story such as Bwoom requires the wearer to put on a large deformed mask that
is distinguishably different than the other two characters who wear normal face masks.
This would suggest that this society valued not only honest and loyal members, but also
only specific religious and ceremonial practices. I assume this because Bwoom in the
origin story represents a culture and type of character that the Kuda kingdom found to be
invasive or malicious to their well-being and he was exiled and killed.
Regardless, the overall importance of the royal masks of the Kuda
kingdom surpasses its immediate cultural meaning. These masks now represent a larger
theme of African cultures and traditions being squandered on or lost in the past. The
Kuda kingdom has a strong culture surrounding it, one of tradition and ritual that is
sacred to its people and represents a small minority of African traditions that remain
intact despite foreign interference. The motto of Wake Forest University is Pro
Humanitate, which literally translates to For Humanity. Its our duty as young scholars
to educate ourselves about cultures and societies that are completely different than our
own which have been buried under centuries of bigotry, arrogance, and pure denial so
that the truth and actual past can be revealed for the better understanding of the past but
also for the betterment of humanity in moving forward in thinking.