GABON, FANG, Reliquary guardian or summit figure of a harp used during initiation ceremonies in the "Ngil" society. It features a two-faced Janus with differentiated expressions, delimited by incised lines symbolically forming a heart-shaped space. This sculpture probably evokes a passage through the ranks, and each face can be likened to the famous Ngil masks worn by influential members of the initiation society during ceremonies intended to designate those responsible for evil deeds against the clan and punish them for their actions. Soft wood, pigments, white and red ochre, old brown patina on the headdress, incised pyrographed motifs, marks of use and insertion in a bag containing sacred relics or the sounding board of a sacred harp. Fang, Gabon, late 19th or early 20th century. H. 47 cm - L. 20 cm Reference number: Expert : Serge Reynes Comment: This work stands out for the beauty of its sculpture, in particular the face with its interiorized, timeless expression of great modernism; for its rarity, with few Janus examples of this type in public or private collections; and for its age, attested by an in situ collection by Louis Bonvin between 1920 and 1938. Louis Bonvin was governor of Gabon in 1936 and a staunch supporter of General De Gaulle throughout the Second World War. Louis Bonvin: "Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur", "Compagnon de la Libération", "Médaille de la Résistance", "Knight Commander of the British Empire".