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06 AfroAtlanticGraphic-Writing

This document summarizes Kongo graphic writing systems used in Central Africa and the Afro-Atlantic world. It discusses the key components of Kongo graphic writing, including ideograms, pictograms, and cosmograms. It also outlines the origins and historical study of Kongo graphic writing, noting key scholars like Clémentine Faïk-Nzuji, Robert Farris Thompson, and K.K. Bunseki Fu-Kiau who have researched and written about these symbolic communication systems. The document concludes by mentioning the transmission of Kongo graphic writing traditions to the Caribbean through the slave trade.

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06 AfroAtlanticGraphic-Writing

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Temple University Press

Chapter Title: Afro-Atlantic Graphic Writing: Bidimbu, Bisinsu, and Firmas

Book Title: Kongo Graphic Writing and Other Narratives of the Sign
Book Author(s): Bárbaro Martínez-Ruiz
Published by: Temple University Press. (2013)
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C H A P T E R 4

Afro-Atlantic Graphic Writing:

Bidimbu, Bisinsu, and Firmas

Kongo Graphic Writing Systems: Overview of

Character and Origins
The term graphic writing systems can be credited to Gerhard Kubik. Build-
ing on existing scholarly work on particular writing traditions that facil-
itated an awareness of graphic expression in Africa,1 Kubik was the first
scholar to study and explain in systematic terms graphic writing traditions.2
He argued that graphic writing must be understood as a “visual commu-
nication system whose constituent parts are graphemes, the smallest mean-
ingful unit in the system.”3 In the context of Kongo graphic writing, these
constituent parts include ideograms, pictograms, and cosmograms, which
can be differentiated as follows:
• Ideograms: Visual signs or abstract graphic representations of an
idea or mental image. A character or symbol representing ideas or
things without expressing a particular word or phrase for it.4
• Pictograms or pictographs: Visual signals or figurative graphic repre-
sentations that depict objects and produce mental images that give
direct access to the objects and ideas. More simply, pictures used to
represent words or ideas.5
• Cosmograms: Compounds of two conventional signs represented
using another, nonfigurative form of representation or notation of
the thought. This form of notation has the function of alluding
to knowledge with implications in the metaphysical, philosophical,
and religious realm. This kind of knowledge is known as cosmol-
ogy, reports about the origin of life, and as cosmogony, reports
about human conception and the existence of God.
In Kongo writing, these constituent graphic units have no form of inde-
pendent phonetic expression but can generally be identified by their proper
names. In addition to using ideographs, pictograms, and cosmograms as
their basic building blocks, Kongo graphic writing systems incorporate
mnemonic elements and letters from the Latin alphabet. Much like any type
of language, these components are combined in both simple and compound
sequences to convey recognizable meaning. Far more than mere collections
47

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48 K o n g o G r a p h i c Wr i t i n g a n d O t h e r N a r r a t i v e s o f t h e S i g n

of visual signs, Kongo graphic writing systems are complex codes of shared
knowledge that develop and communicate cosmology, mythology, and phi-
losophy and defi ne aesthetic realities. They perpetuate and validate collective
memories, epics, legends, myths, and ancient knowledge and play an integral
role in the defi nition and development of African and Kongo-Caribbean
cultures and in the practice of traditional and contemporary African-based
religions. The ancient Bakongo called graphic writing Sinsu kia Nguisami, a
phrase that translates as “communication by code and symbol.” Still in use
today in many parts of Central Africa, graphic writing includes signs known
as bidimbu (symbols) and bisinsu (codes).
Although numerous scholars have studied the use and design of graphic
traditions across a range of cultures, including pre-Columbian (Mayan scrip-
ture), Asian (Chinese, Japanese, Indian, Vietnamese calligraphies), and
North African (Egyptian hieroglyphs), there is a relative dearth of academic
work that examines African graphic writing systems in great depth or in so-
cial context. The imprecision of available historical documents and the lack
of clear reference to graphic writing in Africa before the nineteenth cen-
tury result in limited solid ground on which to build a study of the role of
graphic writing in Kongo culture. Early works on the subject, such as schol-
arship by Joseph H. Greenberg, David Dalby, Lucien Lévy-Bruhl, Marcel
Mauss, Paul Rivet, Georges Balandier, J. K. MacGregor, Jacques Fédry, and
J. Lacouture, have demonstrated the diversity of graphic designs but have
neither explained the way graphic writing can be read nor imbued this tra-
dition of communication with an understanding of its religious context.
Although several contemporary writers have made reference to religious
forms and uses of minkisi and fi rmas, only a couple have begun to systemat-
ically explore the meanings and uses of these communicative forms.
The most complete references to Kongo graphic writing are found in
the works of linguist Clémentine Faïk-Nzuji, in her book Arts africains:
Signes et symboles; African art historian and anthropologist Robert Farris
Thompson, in his book The Four Moments of the Sun; and priest and philos-
opher of Kongo culture K. K. Bunseki Fu-Kiau, who has written extensively
about Kongo writing, most notably in Self-Healing Power and Therapy: Old
Teachings from Africa.
Faïk-Nzuji introduces the notion of bidimbu as a mode of expression
and graphic tradition in Central and West Africa and explores the concept
of symbol in the context of African culture and language.6 Faïk-Nzuji’s most
important contributions are her attempt to explain the semantic complex-
ity of this graphic tradition through an exploration of basic linguistic ques-
tions such as the formal structure of the graphic system and her explanation
of the manner in which graphic elements and symbols are used within the
semantic and syntactic structure. However, while her work successfully
introduces a range of forms of visual expression found among Central Afri-
can cultures, it does not adequately explore the relationship between these
communicative forms or situate them within the broader cultural context
in which they exist.

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A f r o - A t l a n t i c G r a p h i c Wr i t i n g 49

Robert Farris Thompson has provided the most thorough study of

the various components of graphic writing systems. Thompson’s work ex-
plains the notion of bidimbu while exploring the implications of the devel-
opment of this tradition across forms of visual expression in the Bakongo
world in Central Africa and its extension in the Atlantic diaspora. Thomp-
son also provides substantial examples of graphic expression and documents
their interaction with and usage within religious, philosophical, artistic,
and historiographic contexts.7 The forms explored by Thompson include
early rupestrian art and graphic depictions recorded at Central African sites;
three-dimensional art forms such as funerary sculptures and terra-cotta
urns; inscriptions on religious objects, swords, canes, and domestic items;
and engravings on figures and graphic notions expressed through surface
painting, textile design, architectural decoration, and forms of body scarifi-
cation, tattoo, and body language such as poses and gestures.8
K. K. Bunseki Fu-Kiau’s detailed scholarship on the culture, religion,
and philosophy of the Bakongo provides a critical foundation for under-
standing the cosmology underlying the culture’s graphic writing. According
to Fu-Kiau, writing (soni) is a way to achieve the varied goals of communi-
cation but is itself rooted in philological and cosmological knowledge and
cannot be effectively utilized without an understanding of such knowledge.
Indeed, writing is an essential mode of codifying a person’s nature from
the moment he or she is conceived, with one type of writing believed to
transmit energy inside the womb to form ma (matter).9 Fu-Kiau has also
contributed immeasurably to the study of graphic writing through his de-
tailed descriptions of how symbols and other forms of graphic signs con-
nect to establish links and associations between rituals, institutions, and
social processes.
Kongo graphic writing systems are also found throughout the Carib-
bean as a result of three centuries of slave trade that brought memories and
beliefs to the region along with Bakongo slaves. Although rich and var-
ied graphic writing traditions are also found in Haiti, Trinidad, Jamaica,
Suriname, Brazil, and Belize, this book focuses on the origins, form, and
uses of graphic writing in Cuba, where demonstrably strong ties with past
and present Central African traditions form a critical part of complex Afro-
Cuban religious and cultural practices. Kongo-Cuban religious practice
utilizes graphic writing in a single narrative system, known as ﬁrmas (signa-
tures or ganzus), that integrates distinct written symbols and is used in con-
junction with religious objects and oral traditions.
Robert Farris Thompson was the fi rst scholar to understand and docu-
ment the manner in which multiple forms of visual communication relate
to one another within a single cultural system. His initial study of the ways
various graphic forms were and are used by practitioners of Kongo religions
in both Central Africa and the Caribbean has been instrumental in estab-
lishing links across time and space.
The additional research presented here seeks to continue Thompson’s
work and aims to create a more complete and detailed understanding of

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50 K o n g o G r a p h i c Wr i t i n g a n d O t h e r N a r r a t i v e s o f t h e S i g n

Kongo systems of graphic communication on both sides of the Atlantic. An

examination of the historical roots of such communication modes is fol-
lowed by an exploration and detailed examination of the ways graphic writ-
ing systems are used and understood among modern Bakongo in Central
Africa and a parallel investigation of the fi rma system used widely in con-
temporary Cuba.

ancient memory: rUpeStrian art in centraL africa

Any discussion of the uses of written symbols among the Bakongo in the
present and recent past would be incomplete without an understanding of
the historical origin of these communicative marks. The earliest evidence of
Kongo graphic writing is found in multiple archaeological sites around the
border between Angola and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, an area
that covers close to two hundred kilometers. The cave system in this region
is known as Lovo and is located in the Macizo Calcario of Christ mountains.
The archaeological site starts in the north of Kimpese province in the Dem-
ocratic Republic of the Congo and extends south into the Zaire province
of Angola, ending in the city of Mbanza Kongo, the former capital of the
Kongo kingdom (see Figure 3).
The rupestrian designs found in the Lovo complex were the fi rst visual
evidence of graphic communication in the region and were recorded by
Paul Raymaekers and Hendrik van Moorsel in their work “Lovo: Dessins
rupestres du Bas-Congo,” published in 1963. Their catalog of signs and
symbols included numerous features that have allowed for ongoing study of
the signs’ diversity, their use in space, and a comparison of types and forms
of signs across locations. Raymaekers and van Moorsel’s pioneering work
has been complemented by that of Carlos Ervedosa, José Redinha, Henri
Breuil, and G. Mortelmans, each of whom identified additional archaeolog-
ical sites and documented symbols at multiple Central African rupestrian
locations. Invaluable for their collected material, these initial publications
on the graphic tradition evidenced in the caves did not, however, attempt to
decode the meanings of the signs or investigate their usage in and beyond
the sites; nor did they explore a wider range of past and present Kongo cul-
tural practices in Central Africa or the Caribbean.
Around the same time that Raymaekers and van Moorsel were con-
ducting their work on rupestrian art in Central Africa, Marcel Griaule was
documenting and examining rupestrian signs in West Africa as part of his
detailed work with the Dogon. Le renard pâle (The Pale Fox), which Gri-
aule published in collaboration with G. Dieterlen, catalogs a large num-
ber of rupestrian signs and symbols and explores the Dogon notion of the
cosmos and its interplay with oral history and religious practices.10 As dis-
cussed in Chapter 1, Griaule’s sweeping work was groundbreaking inso-
far as it reflected fi ndings from extensive fieldwork and went beyond mere
documentation of rupestrian signs and other forms of visual expression to
explore the cosmogony underlying and expressed through such forms as

K e y:
1 lovo
2 Kiantapo
3 Caninguiri
4 Tchitundo-hulo

f i g U r e 3 map of rupestrian art sites throughout angola and the

democratic republic of Congo. (adapted by the author from a publication
by manuel Jordan, 1996.)

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52 K o n g o G r a p h i c Wr i t i n g a n d O t h e r N a r r a t i v e s o f t h e S i g n

well as the manner in which graphic expression was part of the very founda-
tion of Dogon cultural principles.
More recently, Fu-Kiau and Thompson built on the work of the ear-
lier scholars documenting rupestrian signs in the Kongo region and made
the fi rst attempts to understand their meanings and explore their relation-
ship with and implications for the study of Kongo morality, philosophy, and
religion. Both authors argue that the rupestrian signs represent the early
history of present-day Kongo graphic expression, but Fu-Kiau contextual-
izes the signs within the Kongo cultural system and uses religious beliefs
and moral philosophy to distinguish between them while Thompson situ-
ates his analysis of the rupestrian signs within a study of art, viewing their
use in a plural system of graphic codification and aesthetic form. Impor-
tantly, Thompson also attempts to link the symbols to present-day signs
used in the Bakongo diaspora. A more detailed comparison across the rup-
estrian symbols documented at Lovo and other regional sites and between
such images and varied forms of contemporary graphic communication fur-
ther highlights their similarities in form and function and traces the devel-
opment of this Kongo language form.
Geometric shapes figure heavily in the designs documented in Lovo,
leading Thompson to characterize the graphic expression as “geometric of
the spirit.”11 As seen in Figure 4, the designs encompass a range of geomet-
ric forms and features, including squares, rectangles, and circles; straight,
convex, and concave lines; and notched, serrated, rounded, and pointed
shapes. These geometric forms and the composition style that dominates at
Lovo are also seen in the decoration of ceramic work unearthed around this
same area and, as discussed later in this chapter, across a variety of graphic
expressions documented in the Mbanza Kongo region in the present day.12
Unfortunately, given the importance of the link these paintings repre-
sent in the history of Central African graphic writing systems, precise in-
formation on their age is unavailable. Raymaekers and van Moorsel noted
aesthetic parallels between the Lovo drawings and cave paintings in Alta-
mira, Spain, that date back approximately twenty thousand years, but no
tests have been conducted to corroborate or disprove such speculative age.
Raymaekers and van Moorsel also argue that the Lovo drawings were made
during the evangelization of the Kongo kingdom, which began with the
conversion of the Mani Kongo Nzinga a Mvemba (Nkuvu) and his wife
in 1491 and continued with the role of their son Mvemba a Nzinga I
(1507–1542).13 To support this argument, the authors reference multiple
fragments of ceramic unearthed at the Lovo site during archaeological ex-
cavations that scientific testing dates to around A.D. 1600.14 Archaeologists
have noted the existence of burial yards containing ceramic remnants, pre-
sumably of funerary character,15 similar to those found at rupestrian sites
in Angola and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which indicates that
further study of the objects encountered in and around the Lovo caves will
be a critical component of any investigation into the history of the rupes-

f i g U r e 4 lovo rupestrian painting. (adapted by the author from paul raymaekers and
hendrik van moorsel, “lovo: dessins rupestres du Bas-Congo,” Ngonge, Carnets de sciences
humaines, nos. 12, 13, and 14 [léopoldville, 1962]. image courtesy of paul raymaekers/
hendrik van moorsel.)

trian sites and the role they played for the region’s people. Scientific dating
of other rupestrian sites in Angola discussed in this chapter may provide
some insight into Lovo’s history, but even with the lack of proof of the age
of the rupestrian drawings in Central Africa, their antiquity is undoubted.
More importantly, as discussed later in this chapter, the deep history of

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54 K o n g o G r a p h i c Wr i t i n g a n d O t h e r N a r r a t i v e s o f t h e S i g n

these drawings can be directly connected to symbols that today form part
of a complex system of graphic communication that is informed by Ba-
kongo religious beliefs and moral philosophy.
Before focusing on the actual symbols found in Lovo and more recently
cataloged sites in its immediate vicinity discussed later in this chapter, it is
worth exploring briefly the similarities between these symbols and paint-
ings and carvings discovered in southern Angola and the southern Demo-
cratic Republic of the Congo. Principal sites include Tchitundo-Hulo and
Caninguiri in southern Angola and Kiantapo in the Democratic Republic
of the Congo.
The sites in southern Angola have been dated more precisely than their
northern counterparts, with the Caninguiri drawings found in the Alto
Zambezi zone in southeastern Angola believed to be 7,840 ± 80 years old
and those documented at Tchitundo-Hulo believed to be 2,596 ± 53 years
old, perhaps indicating the time period during which production of rupes-
trian art began to be widespread in Central Africa.16
More importantly, the sites in southern Angola demonstrate continu-
ity with the Lovo site in the subject matter that is portrayed, the relational
positioning of visual vocabulary, and the manner in which the drawings
are conceptualized. For example, all three sets of images contain numer-
ous depictions of figures striking poses and making gestures. The common-
alties in the gestures themselves are informative, as is the common theme
and apparent importance ascribed to body language, an importance that
continues in contemporary Kongo communities, as detailed in Chapter 3.
Another critical area of overlap between the images documented across the
different cave sites is the utilization of single, contained signs as well as
groupings of integrated images that combine different types of communica-
tive elements or linguistic components in the same frame.
The symbols documented at Kiantapo in the southern Democratic Re-
public of the Congo also share important aesthetic traits with those re-
corded at Lovo. Several signs involve arrows indicating directions; others
appear to involve planetary symbols; and the designs at Lovo and Kian-
tapo both contain numerous animal and human images. The primary dif-
ference between the two is the mode of composition: in Lovo the symbols
are drawn with steady solid lines and are painted on the cave wall, whereas
many of those in Kiantapo are created using dotted lines carved into the
stone surface, as seen in Figure 5.
Table 1 compares a wider range of key symbols found in Lovo, Tchi-
tundo-Hulo, and Kiantapo.
Except for Lovo and selected sites in the south of Angola, Central Afri-
can rock art has rarely been incorporated into the broader discussion of
African prehistory, colonial history, and postcolonial history, and no recent
works have been published that document new sites, explore the historic
functions of rock art, or investigate its present and historical relationship
with religious and cultural practices in or beyond Central Africa. The lack
of recent documentation of and research into rock painting and carving in

f i g U r e 5 rupestrian painting from the Kiantapo site, democratic republic of the

Congo. (adapted by the author from henri Breuil and G. mortelmans, Les figures incisées
et ponctuées de la grotte de Kiantapo [Brussels: Tervuren, 1952]. image courtesy of
henri Breuil.)

Angola is arguably attributable at least in part to the lack of access to the

region during its extended fi fty-year civil war, to the logistical and techni-
cal difficulties associated with reaching the sites and conducting high-level
visual and sound recordings, and to significant cultural barriers to entry
throughout the region.

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56 K o n g o G r a p h i c Wr i t i n g a n d O t h e r N a r r a t i v e s o f t h e S i g n

ta b L e 1 Comparison of a wide range of key symbols found in lovo (luvo),

Tchitundo-hulo, and Kiantapo

Lovo tchitundo-hulo Kiantapo

(paul raymaekers) (carlos ervedosa) (henri breuil)

ta b L e 1 (continued)

Lovo tchitundo-hulo Kiantapo

(paul raymaekers) (carlos ervedosa) (henri breuil)

(continued on next page)

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58 K o n g o G r a p h i c Wr i t i n g a n d O t h e r N a r r a t i v e s o f t h e S i g n

ta b L e 1 (continued)

Lovo tchitundo-hulo Kiantapo

(paul raymaekers) (carlos ervedosa) (henri breuil)

ta b L e 1 (continued)

Lovo tchitundo-hulo Kiantapo

(paul raymaekers) (carlos ervedosa) (henri breuil)

Despite these challenges, research conducted over the course of several

extended trips undertaken since 2002 throughout the Mbanza Kongo-Kin-
shasa area of northern Angola has succeeded in the gathering of additional
physical evidence of past graphic writing and documentation of present-day
use of graphic communication by the Bakongo. Multiple previously unre-
corded rupestrian sites in the region have been identified and documented,
each containing large quantities of rock carvings and paintings that appear
to be dated primarily before the twentieth century. These sites contain
clearly identifiable symbols that are markedly similar in form and style to
both rupestrian art documented elsewhere in Central Africa and symbols
documented in contemporary use. For example, selected geometric shapes
and repeated patterns found at the sites are replicated in contemporary reli-
gious markings, pottery and textile designs, architectural details, and tomb
designs, as explored in more detail in this chapter and the next.
Table 2 tracks, by principal site, the motifs documented in the region
between 2005 and 2007.17 The numbers represent the approximate count
of given motifs recorded in situ.
The site shown in Figure 6, known as Tadi dia Mfuakumbi, or the
“First Engraving,” illustrates an unrivaled fusion of form, aesthetics, and

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60 K o n g o G r a p h i c Wr i t i n g a n d O t h e r N a r r a t i v e s o f t h e S i g n

ta b L e 2 Fifteen categories of representations documented in mbanza Kongo rock-painting sites

between 2005 and 2007 and the number of each category at each site

ne- mfua- nvila- Lu-

motif description mongo kumbi tezua Lovo ntuta yidi kingu

Anthropomorphic
anthropomorphic The human figure is 4 25 1 4 1
represented in its entirety
Fragmentary Only a portion of a human 2 12 2 1
anthropomorphic figure is depicted, e.g.,
torso, headless figure
human foot The figure depicts the 5
human foot, positive or
negative image

Zoomorphic
mammalian figure The figure seemingly
represents a mammal 18 2
mammalian “tracks” The foot (or feet) of a
mammal is represented
Bird figures The figure seemingly 2 6 2 1
represents a bird
Bird “tracks” The foot (or feet) of a bird 2 2
is represented
reptilian figures The depiction suggests 3 6 6
a reptile, e.g., snake, lizard

Geometric;
Body Ornaments;
Incised Stones,
Bowls, and Tools;
Architectural
Decorations
rectilinear nonrepresentational figures 15 23 17 3
characterized by straight
lines; formed or bounded
by straight lines
Curvilinear nonrepresentational figures 1 25 37 14 5
consisting of or bounded
by curved lines
Concentric Figures having a common 18 30 27 12 2
center or common axis,
e.g., circle, spiral
abstract geometric motifs or outlines that are 50 9 40 40 28 3
characterized by both
straight and curved lines but
that bear no resemblance to
natural form

ta b L e 2 (continued)

ne- mfua- nvila- Lu-

motif description mongo kumbi tezua Lovo ntuta yidi kingu

Narratives,
Dancing Scenes,
Painting,
Drawing
simple composition The depiction is charac- 12 12 5 13 2
terized by a combination
of a few figures and signs
as part of a whole
Complex narratives The depiction is charac- 6 17 3 8
terized by an elaborate
combination of figures
and signs in order to
suggest a story or storyline
palimpsests motifs or outlines that 3 2 2 3 2 2
are characterized by
being redrawn over a
previous form

f i g U r e 6 Tadi dia mfuakumbi, angola, 2004.

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62 K o n g o G r a p h i c Wr i t i n g a n d O t h e r N a r r a t i v e s o f t h e S i g n

subject matter and is one of the most complex and well-preserved sites doc-
umented. The images and signs depict numerous Bakongo concepts and are
best described as the material expressions of local oral traditions, including
proverbs, songs, and funeral and wedding chants. For example, an abstract
depiction of the dikenga cross at Tadi dia Mfuakumbi represents the order
of things in the cosmos and the human world and symbolizes the soul. It
is further understood to refer to the proverb “Where it is closed, it cannot
be opened.”18
The location of the Tadi dia Mfuakumbi site is itself culturally signifi-
cant; the site is associated with a local myth that tells of
a young couple a long time ago who liked to swim in the river. Soon after
they were married, they went to the river to celebrate the almighty union.
The village elders learned during the traditional council that the couple
must die in order to honor the spirit who empowered the river. There was
a specific Sîmbi spirit that controlled the river who had requested these
young lives in an appearance in the dreams of the village chief. Accord-
ing to the village priest, the couple had to drown themselves in the water
as a gift to this Sîmbi spirit, but they would later be honored and remem-
bered for their sacrifice and would return in the afterlife as manifestations
of yisimbi themselves.19

The iconography documented at Tadi dia Mfuakumbi is varied, and,

although certain elements—such as the depiction of the human body using
diamond shapes and the depiction of eyes in the form of coffee beans to sig-
nify clairvoyance—are unique and appear somewhat idiosyncratic, many of
the designs demonstrate significant parallels with other depictions in the
area. The images contain several types of iconic motifs that can be catego-
rized into groups of abstract, zoomorphic, and anthropomorphic motifs,
comprising geometric shapes, animals, and humans, respectively. In addi-
tion to such distinct motifs, the Mfuakumbi carvings use an iconic narra-
tive to encode a miscellany of overlaid, superimposed signs and symbols
to allude to a set of key themes central to Bakongo religion, including cre-
ation, nature, the environment, life, death, hunting, and rites of passage.
Mﬁnda a Ntuta is another prime example of newly documented rock
art, capable of invigorating a discourse on religious meaning, cultural leg-
acy, communication, and literacy among the Bakongo as expressed through
graphic writing practices. The vast number of examples of graphic writing
present at this single site show the breadth and depth of visual forms used in
a ritual context, illustrate a consistency in form with examples documented
at other Central African sites, and suggest that the same site was used and
reused by the local religious community over a significant period of time.
In addition to being central to a contemporary study of past and pres-
ent uses of graphic writing among the Bakongo, these sites continue to
be of material cultural and spiritual significance to the local communities
where they are found. Figure 7 shows the performance at the mouth of the
Nemongo cave of a libation necessary to authorize entry to the site and a

f i g U r e 7 miguel moises at the mouth of the nemongo cave performing the libation
necessary to authorize the proposed research. right in front of miguel moises is clearly
visible an example of the graphic form depicting a dikenga cosmogram made out of
kaolin (luvenva). palm wine and cola for the libation were critical components of the
performance used to call the spirit of moises’s uncle during my visit to the site. The
dikenga cosmogram is the most frequently observed symbol in Central africa. Tadi dia
nemongo site, angola, 2004.

similar ceremony over a clear example of the dikenga sign (discussed in the
next section).
Sites also continue to be used by initiation societies active in and around
the Mbanza Kongo area, with signs indicating certain societies depicted in
various locations. For example, the flower symbol pictured in the Mfi nda a
Ntuta site (Figure 8) is the emblem of the Lemba society and is frequently
depicted on a range of objects used by and symbolic of its membership.20

f i g U r e 8 luvunisa (contradict), emblem

of the lemba initiatory society. mfinda a ntuta
site, angola, 2005.

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64 K o n g o G r a p h i c Wr i t i n g a n d O t h e r N a r r a t i v e s o f t h e S i g n

Many of the signs carved into rupestrian sites documented near Mbanza
Kongo represent local proverbs and form part of a broader fabric of oral tra-
ditions and local religious practices. Two clear concepts in graphic writing,
inventory, and complex narrative are visible in the rupestrian sites and cor-
respond to two phases in the development of Kongo culture. The building
of inventory was the pooling by Bantu agricultural settlers of visual tools
for conveying meaning in early rupestrian sites. In addition to the simple
pooling of symbols, the gathering and organizing of visual concepts facil-
itated the development of complex iconic narratives, which in turn played
an essential role in the religious cognition and further organization of soci-
ety through the extended family, the creation of specialized societies, and
the later formation of the Kongo organizational hierarchies. The location
of the graphic writing at specific, presumably strategic sites in the rain for-
est, gallery forest, and savanna highlights the central role of graphic writing
in early Bantu cultural and social organization and suggests the impor-
tance of such sites to the Bantu of the region, and it may indicate potential
migratory routes. The use of increasingly complex graphic expression rep-
resented a communication breakthrough and required a more significant
degree of coordination and contextualization. Its fi rst stage required a con-
ceptual leap that permitted users to connect a common set of abstract and
pictographic representations to a unique meaning grounded in Kongo cul-
tural principles. The distinct geometric and pictographic signs and symbols
were later contextualized in a broader visual narrative that incorporated the
objects and ritual practices discussed elsewhere in this book.
The examples shown in Figures 9 through 21 are representative of the
manner in which the symbols depicted both incorporate and reference ele-
ments from such traditions and highlight the richness of meanings embed-
ded in and conveyed by graphic writing. Although precise dating of the
specific sites has not been done, the choice of signs, along with the knowl-
edge regarding their meanings among members of the community, speaks
to a continuity in understanding and use of the practice as a mode of com-
municating community concerns and cultural lessons.
Other scholars interested in the social and historical context surround-
ing the production of rupestrian art have explored alternative theories to
explain the use and meaning of documented signs and symbols. David
Lewis-Williams and Thomas Dowson, in connection with their work on
rock art in southern Africa, have posited that geometric motifs found across
a range of rupestrian sites are representations of images seen in the dis-
sociative state of a divinatory or similar trance. Although such a thesis is
intriguing and can be helpful in understanding basic prehistoric human
biology, I believe that this notion of an “altered state of consciousness” is
limited insofar as it makes a generalized assertion that all humans can and
will understand the specific meanings of early rock painting iconography
in the same manner because we share the same basic biology and brain cir-
cuitry. Furthermore, an inquiry into Kongo culture in Central Africa and
the diaspora requires an understanding of the process of cognition and the

f i g U r e 9 “Tuna mvovela lendo lua nzambi” is

a proverb meaning, “We are talking about God’s
power.” The double arrow indicates masculinity,
lightning, fecundity, and power. The northeast
direction of the arrow symbolizes ascent to the
ancestral realm and communication with those
responsible for bringing fertility and healing rain.
The double arrow signifies the transcendence of
an earthly state during the initiation rite. Tadi dia
mfuakumbi site, angola, 2004.

f i g U r e 10 “vena owu kevakadi owu ko” is a

proverb meaning, “Where it is closed, it cannot
be opened.” The cross represents the order of
things in the cosmos and the human world and
symbolizes the soul. Tadi dia mfuakumbi site,
angola, 2004.

f i g U r e 11 Zoomorphic motif.
“O nsusu vokelaya nga makiko ngola
negola” is a proverb meaning, “The
hen that does not warm up its eggs
will lose its chicks.” Tadi dia mfuakumbi
site, angola, 2004.

f i g U r e 12 anthropomorphic motif. “disu

muna disu, mena muna meno.” Traditional law
(nsiku) and system for justice (ndembo). Tadi dia
mfuakumbi site, angola, 2004.

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66 K o n g o G r a p h i c Wr i t i n g a n d O t h e r N a r r a t i v e s o f t h e S i g n

f i g U r e 13 “mvu ke mvu mia nkundalala” is f i g U r e 14 “Wanda wa lufua” is a proverb

a proverb meaning, “years of glory have forever meaning, “We all face death.” mfinda a ntuta site,
passed.” mfinda a ntuta site, angola, 2005. angola, 2005.

f i g U r e 15 Wanda: the cosmos, f i g U r e 16 “vena o mbuta vena mpe a nlenke

universe, and world. mfinda a ntuta vena mpe diadi o yalanga” is a proverb meaning,
site, angola, 2005. “Where are adults, are children.” mfinda a ntuta
site, angola, 2005.

17 18 19
f i g U r e S 17–19 17: “nduakilu za mbote,” Welcome and hospitality. 18: The universe is just one,
everything is connected. 19: Futumuka, resurrection. mfinda a ntuta site, angola, 2005.

f i g U r e 2 0 an iconic motif: “ndiata a lunwenya” is a proverb meaning, “Warning sign;

wisdom.” Tadi dia lukingu site, angola. (drawing in situ by Bárbaro martínez-ruiz, 2006.)

f i g U r e 21 The triangle that joins the right edge of the ladder represents the
ancestors in relation to the family. The ladder represents a family or a family’s history.
The ladder represents people. Tadi dia lukingu site, angola. (drawing in situ by Bárbaro
martínez-ruiz, 2006.)

mechanics of writing that is not addressed by Lewis-Williams and Dowson.

More useful than a generalization about altered consciousness is an expla-
nation focused on the nature of graphic forms and on how humans acquire,
produce, and use knowledge and a study of the emancipatory political and
cultural functions associated with writing in a society faced with a hege-
monic cultural system. Although there is no defi nitive way of knowing how
symbols were originally designed or where early rupestrian artists got their
inspiration from, and although divinatory practices involving dissociation

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68 K o n g o G r a p h i c Wr i t i n g a n d O t h e r N a r r a t i v e s o f t h e S i g n

are an important part of traditional religious practice, the clear continuity

of designs across Bakongo sites and with symbols used in a range of other
religious and cultural practices argues for the existence of a more complex
and cognizant process underlying the development and continued use of
the most prominent rupestrian signs.

the almighty dikenga

The most powerful example of the graphic continuity between the Lovo
paintings, the engravings at the newly documented sites, and contemporary
symbol usage among the Bakongo in Central Africa and their descendants
in Cuba is the frequent appearance of dikenga. Dikenga is a cosmogram
considered crucial to Kongo cosmology in that it represents the conception
of all living beings in the universe.21 In addition, dikenga is itself believed
and understood to be the energy of the universe, the force of all existence
and creation.
The basic graphic structure of dikenga is four cardinal points at the tips
of two lines arranged in cross formation, similar to a compass. The tremen-
dous diversity in the documented representations of dikenga illustrates sub-
stantial design flexibility, but the consistent inclusion of the cosmogram’s
basic principles confi rms the central meaning and use of the cosmogram.
Fu-Kiau highlights the diversity in representations of dikenga in Figure 22.
Like Fu-Kiau, Thompson has illustrated a range of dikenga represen-
tations, as seen in Figure 23. Thompson perceptively includes a diamond-
shaped dikenga, arguing that the dikenga’s meaning is maintained with or
without dots in the corners and holds constant whether depicted in cross,
circle, or diamond form. In Kongo culture, the diamond shape is used to
signify Nzambi Mpungo, God, and is used as the heart of sacred objects.22

f i g U r e 2 2 Bunseki Fu-Kiau series of signs. (adapted by the author from K. K. Bunseki

Fu-Kiau, Cosmogonie Congo [Kinshasa: Onrd, 1969].)

f i g U r e 2 3 robert Farris Thompson series of signs. (adapted by the author from

robert Farris Thompson, The Four Moments of the Sun [Washington, dC: national Gallery
of art, 1981]. image courtesy of robert Farris Thompson.)

24 25 26 27

f i g U r e S 2 4 –27 dikenga and yowa crosses. (adapted by the author from

K. K. Bunseki Fu-Kiau, Cosmogonie Congo [Kinshasa: Onrd, 1969].)

Dikenga is often shown in a form more similar to that of a traditional

Christian cross. In such a form, it is called yowa or kilisu, and is most often
used in the context of initiation rituals. For example, individuals initiated
into the Bakongo Lemba society generally wear a yowa to indicate their
membership. Although they maintain the basic meaning of dikenga, yowa
cosmograms tend to be understood as closer to the Western crucifi x, a ten-
dency resulting from syncretic religious practices in Central Africa.23 The
examples seen in Figures 24 through 27 were documented by Fu-Kiau in
the southern Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Bakongo culture ascribes to each cardinal point of the dikenga cos-
mogram an ontological meaning that symbolizes a segment of the broader
transition between various stages of life. The four points of dikenga tell of a
journey of the community’s accumulation, interpretation, and transmission
of knowledge. The cosmogram represents each human as “a living sun”24
and marks the phases through which individuals progress as they develop a
conscience, take on responsibility, and assume a sense of belonging to reli-
gious, political, cultural, familial, and national communities. Faïk-Nzuji’s
work among the Luba-Kasai people echoes this representation, describing
dikenga as illustrative of life’s principles as seen through the biological, psy-
chological, and spiritual journey of a human life.25
In the form of a circle, the points of the cosmogram will be read coun-
terclockwise, beginning at the bottom, the southernmost point on the
dikenga. The counterclockwise motion represents a rising in the east and
a movement toward the west, then back again. Fu-Kiau explains that the
counterclockwise motion is believed by religious practitioners in Mbanza
Kongo to indicate the path the living take to meet their ancestors.
As described by Fu-Kiau, the southern cardinal point indicates not
birth but the moment of conception of a child or the beginning of a per-
son in the community. Like a sunrise, it illuminates human life, recognizes
the power of fertility, and symbolizes the moment of entering the world of
the living and exchanging power with the ancestors in nature. The eastern
cardinal point symbolizes the beginning of an individual’s transformation
into a full member of society through the learning of social rules and the
accepting of responsibility within the family and community. The north-
ern cardinal point stands for the transformation of accumulated experience

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70 K o n g o G r a p h i c Wr i t i n g a n d O t h e r N a r r a t i v e s o f t h e S i g n

into intellectual power facilitated by interaction between the individual and

other members of the community. Finally, the western cardinal point rep-
resents the transmission of society’s accumulated critical knowledge to the
younger generation, the moment of departure, comprehension, and under-
standing.26 Dikenga’s four points are also recognized by and incorporated
into religious practices in present-day Mbanza Kongo: the southern point
is called ngutuka, which means “to be born”; the eastern point, kindende,
which represents adolescence; the northern point, nvuta, which means
adulthood; and the fourth position, vunda, which means “to rest” and im-
plies the moment of death.27
The circular motion through the four points is repetitive, implying
both a transition beyond death to another stage and the continued involve-
ment of the ancestors with the ongoing cycle of life. A similar cyclical con-
cept of life and regeneration is expressed in a Kongo proverb that states,
“We are leaves in the tree of the human race.”28 Dikenga’s allusion to the
principal stages of life makes it an ideal sign to mark or otherwise signify
the passing from one stage to another; hence it is frequently used in Kongo
tomb decoration.
Fu-Kiau expands on the understanding of each of dikenga’s positions as
stages in the journey of human life by comparing them to the path taken by
the sun, stating that “the way of the sun is without end around the world,
the life of the human is another sun in his outline.”29 Because the sun rep-
resents Nzambi Mpungo, or God, this metaphor is particularly powerful
and confi rms the importance of the dikenga in Bakongo culture. The four
suns that correspond to the cosmogram’s cardinal points and their symbolic
meanings and associated colors are as follows:

1. Musoni sun (yellow sun)—sun of perfection

2. Kala sun (black sun)—sun of vitality
3. Tukula sun (red sun)—sun of warning (danger)
4. Luvemba sun (gray/white sun)—sun of death and change

The core signs that build on the dikenga cosmogram are Sînsu kian-
gudi kia nza-kongo,30 described as the general symbol of Kongo cosmog-
ony, and Dingo-dingo dia Luzîngu,31 which represents life’s spiral motion
and the manner in which a “human being’s life is a continuous process of
transformation, of going around and around” and “being in continuous
motion through the four stages of balance between a vertical force and hor-
izontal force.”32
Thompson, in Faces of the Gods, explains the meaning of dikenga in
terms similar to those used by Fu-Kiau. Describing its function in moral
and philosophical terms, Thompson writes that dikenga

charts the soul’s timeless voyage. Soul cycles as a star in heaven. To the Ba-
kongo it is a shining circle, a miniature of the sun. [Dikenga marks] the
sun’s four moments—dawn, noon, sunset, and midnight (when it’s shining

in the other world)—by small circles at the end of each arm of the cross,
mirroring the immortal progress of the soul: birth, full strength, fading,
renaissance. The four corners of a diamond tell the same sequence.33

For Thompson, the dikenga sign tracks the “Bakongo geometry of

spirit,” using circles, diamonds, spirals, and crosses to portray spiritual fl ight
across each corner of the world.34 This discussion of dikenga highlights the
function of the graphic form as a foundation of the Bakongo cultural sys-
tem and, by indicating that the graphic form is more than mere decoration,
alludes to its importance in linking communicative structures, art, religious
expression, and philosophy.
The dikenga cosmogram is defi ned largely by two important elements
of its design, the intersecting lines, kalûnga and mukula,35 and the cosmo-
gram cannot be fully understood without a discussion of their meaning.
Kalûnga is the horizontal line stretching from east to west. As discussed in
greater detail in Chapter 3, kalûnga plays a complex yet fundamental role in
Bakongo cosmology and cosmogony. It is the energy that is believed to have
created all life, the boundary that divides this world from that of the ances-
tors, a source of power, a sensation of movement, and an agent for spiritual
cleansing. Although this entire broad and multilayered concept is contained
within the horizontal line of dikenga’s cross, different components of its
meaning are emphasized depending on the context and manner in which
the cosmogram is used. For example, when the dikenga sign is used to
indicate a family unit, the kalûnga line merely signifies the union between
husband and wife, whereas when dikenga is used in divination, kalûnga rep-
resents the division between the realms of the living and the dead. Refer-
ring to the Bakongo creation myth in which the kalûnga force creates the
world out of the emptiness, Fu-Kiau explains the force’s depiction and role
in dikenga as a line or space of emptiness. The Kongo conception of emp-
tiness is vastly different from Western understandings of the term in that
the Kongo believe that it is in the so-called emptiness that the spirits reside.
While empty of physical human life, such space is full of energy and spir-
itual forces so that “man’s life is surrounded by diverse forces and waves
which govern it.”36
Vertically intersecting kalûnga in the dikenga cosmogram is the mu-
kula line. Mukula means “to grow” and “[to gain a] full understanding of
the principles of life or living (N’kîngu miazîngila), principles that could as-
sist in keeping [life’s] potential power and passing it on safely to one’s off-
spring.”37 These principles are taught by ancestors and transferred along
mukula, traveling upward to the land of the living. Mukula is understood in
Palo Monte as “the axis of time” and can be described as the corridor of the
spirits, a pathway that is used by the ancestors to cross the land of the dead
and assist their beloved people over Kalûnga.38 The junction where these
two lines cross is called muntu ya kuluzu, which means “to grow up in the
cross,”39 and is believed to represent a unique personal identity for each in-
dividual, signifying such an individual’s destiny in life.40

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72 K o n g o G r a p h i c Wr i t i n g a n d O t h e r N a r r a t i v e s o f t h e S i g n

dikenga in cuba: the circle of new Life

The dikenga cosmogram and the complex set of meanings it conveys also
play a central role in Kongo-descended religious and cultural practices in
Cuba, where it is known as nkuyu and is referred to by Palo Monte practition-
ers as “the abstract thing from Congo.”41 It is used to depict the belief in
powerful spirits of nature and to represent cosmological elements, and, like
dikenga in Africa, nkuyu is itself understood to be a spiritual force. It is a
manifestation of the power of creation and the energy of the universe, thus
becoming the ultimate affi rmation of God, the ancestors, and other spiri-
tual forces. The term nkuyu itself comes from Kikongo, although its precise
etymological origin and meaning are unclear. Laman describes nkuyu as a
kind of nkisi among the Bembe and neighboring cultures and writes that
the term nkuyu is generally used to refer to “the spirit of a deceased person
that has been captured and incorporated into a sculpture.”42
Nkuyu has similarly been associated with an nkisi in Cuba, with Lydia
Cabrera describing an nkuyu as “a wooden doll of about sixty centimeters
into which the priest makes the spirit enter.”43 Cabrera notes that the main
function of nkuyu in Palo Monte is to protect the worshiper, but recognizes
that other forces intervene in the religious performance.44 Describing a sim-
ple cosmogram, Cabrera writes, “The circle signifies security. In the cen-
ter of the circle, the cross is the power; the power of all the spiritual powers
called by the priest (nganga).”45
Building on references provided by Fernando Ortiz in the early 1950s,
Wyatt MacGaffey writes about dikenga in Cuba: “Across the Atlantic,
Kongo ritual experts in Cuba represent the cosmos as a circle divided into
four segments by a cross inscribed in it.”46 MacGaffey’s account is consis-
tent with those of other scholars and experts on Cuba, including Cabrera,
Argeliers León, and Thompson. It is also confi rmed by Palo Monte priests
Fresneda Bachiller and Garcia Villamil, who describe contemporary styles
of nkuyu depiction. Whereas the basic form is the circle and cross, shown
in Figure 36, numerous design modifications are made that add fi nesse or
detail to the cosmogram in different contexts, as explored in further detail
later in this chapter.
The circular shape of nkuyu is significant insofar as a circle is a par-
ticularly meaningful sign in Palo Monte; it is most closely associated with
the world of the ancestors. It symbolizes protection, time, perfection, the
receipt of energy, balance and existence, and the realm of initiation. Like
dikenga, the circle is the pathway through which spiritual fl ight crosses the
frontier that divides the living from the dead. For this reason, nkuyu is
also known by the term lucero, which means “star” or “circle of new life.”
The lucero is believed to be a gateway through which change occurs, and
it is used within the religion to represent the crossing from one world to
another and the beginning of a new life.47
Like their counterparts in Angola, graves in Cuban cemeteries display
numerous depictions of dikenga to mark the passage from one world to the

next. The use of dikenga at grave sites has also been recorded in other parts
of the Americas. Robert Farris Thompson writes about the grave-marking
tradition in the southern United States in Faces of the Gods. He specifically
references African American graves in Virginia, Florida, and southwestern
Mississippi, writing:
The circle of the soul around the interesting worlds—the rhetorical point
of the Kongo cosmogram (dikenga, “the tuning”)—echoes throughout
the black Americas. The circle is “written” in a curved length of green
garden hose on a headstone in black Austin and echoed by other exam-
ples. Another instance of cryptic sparking of the soul and continuity, with
an image of the sun in motion, is an object-studded inner garden built
around a cedar tree.48

The cross within the lucero’s circle maps the forces of the universe,
dividing the space into four parts that represent the cosmos, nature, the
atmosphere, and humans and human creation. The four positions them-
selves are symbols of power: the north represents God or the almighty
forces of creation; the south represents animals; the east represents plants
and trees; and the west represents minerals.49 These positions are collec-
tively called “The Four Winds” by Fresneda Bachiller and Garcia Villamil,
who describe the unity of the four parts as responsible for the creation of all
existence and describe the parts collectively as the principles of the universe.
As noted earlier, while the circle and cross form the basic structure of
the lucero, a wide range of different designs have been documented as being
used across Cuba. The fourteen examples in Figures 28 through 41, drawn
by Fresneda Bachiller and Garcia Villamil over the past two decades, illus-
trate this range.

28 29 30 31

32 33 34 35

f i g U r e S 2 8 –35 Circle-of-new-life signs in the palo monte religion in Cuba. (From

Bárbaro martínez-ruiz, personal collection, 1988.)

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74 K o n g o G r a p h i c Wr i t i n g a n d O t h e r N a r r a t i v e s o f t h e S i g n

36 37 38

39 40 41

f i g U r e S 3 6 – 41 more circle-of-new-life signs in the palo monte religion in Cuba.

(From Bárbaro martínez-ruiz, personal collection, 1988.)

In Palo Monte, the lucero is always used in practice in conjunction with

a spiritual force. In Cuba each religious object (prenda) needs a lucero in
order to function. It is the lucero that gives the spirit inhabiting the prenda
the ability to travel and communicate with other forces and Palo practi-
tioners. The lucero is described as a guiding light, the eyes of the pren-
da’s spirit. To be guided in this way, all prendas must physically sit on a
depiction of the lucero. Cabrera describes this arrangement, writing, “The
Prenda sits on a circle that represents the ocean (Kalûnga). In the middle,
another circle is the earth. The cross is the ‘four winds.’”50 Figures 42 and
43 show two examples of luceros on altars documented, respectively, by
Fresneda Bachiller in the Cotorro municipality in Cuba, 2000, and by Gar-
cia Villamil in Los Angeles, California, 2001.
While all functioning prendas must sit on a lucero cosmogram, not all
luceros are used for such purpose. Instead, they are employed in a wide
variety of contexts for a range of purposes. In the fourteen examples in
Figures 28 through 41, the modification of the design reflects the cosmo-
gram’s partner force, its function, and the location where it is used. The
distinct characteristics of the signs in each of these figures and their uses are
given in Table 3.
The use of nkuyu exemplifies a type of religious practice in Palo Monte
that is based on the notion of contract (nkandu). This type of contract re-
fers not to a legal commitment but to an agreement between humans, an-
cestors, and natural forces. It alludes to ritual methodology used in Palo
Monte in order to establish the principles underlying the manipulation of
vibrations during a ritual performance and forms a contractual commitment
between the forces and vibrations controlled by a priest and endorsed or ac-
tivated within the prenda. In the nkuyu, each of the cardinal points and the
center of the cosmogram represent one of the following types of contract.

figUre 42
example of a lucero,
provided by Osvaldo
Fresneda Bachiller.
(photograph by lisa
maya Knauer, 2000.)

South: contracts with animals, with the energy

of the animals that represents natural and
cosmic forces
East: contracts with vegetation, with the energy
of plants, herbage, and trees
North: contract with the psychic world, energy
of psychological manifestation as dreams,
hallucinations, intuitions, and spirit com-
munication
West: contracts with the elements, energy of
nature and cosmos manifested as fi re, vol-
canic eruptions, tornadoes, earthquakes,
and bodies of the universe such as planets,
stars, and comets
Center: contracts of combination, energy as
the result of combining two or more of
the other modalities
The colors used in luceros in Cuba are also im-
portant to an understanding of their role and con- f i g U r e 4 3 example of a lucero from
textual meaning. Each cardinal point, as well as Felipe Garcia villamil, 2002.
the center of the lucero, is associated with a color
and a meaning. The associations are similar to those described by Bunseki
Fu-Kiau in his work on dikenga among Kikongo-speaking cultural groups
in Central Africa and are described by Fresneda Bachiller and Garcia Villa-
mil as follows:
South: Yellow—fresh water, the river or Sîmbi spirit
North: Red—change, transformation, dangerous situation

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76 K o n g o G r a p h i c Wr i t i n g a n d O t h e r N a r r a t i v e s o f t h e S i g n

ta b L e 3 in the fourteen examples in Figures 28–41, the modification of the design reflects the
cosmogram’s partner force, its function, and the location where it is used. This table gives the distinct
characteristics and uses of each figure.

figure description

28 The most basic form of lucero. marks the place where the spirit will land. Generally used under a
prenda, under the bed, or under a glass of water.
29 Used to interact with the spirit using gunpowder or sulfur. To clean and protect physical locations,
such as the four corners of a home or the crossroads.
30 Used in the course of a graphic narrative, as part of a larger firma. Used in war or to defend against
a spiritual threat, to win the battle.
31 Used to convey a treaty or partnership between nkuyu and sarabanda and Gurufinda.
Joins together the healing and communication powers of all three spirits to be expressed
through nkuyu.
32 Used to resolve situations related to housing, to bring harmony and protection to a home.
33 lucero partnered with Tiembla Tierra, or “earthquake.” Used to cool down or relax a person.
34 Called Cuatro Vientos (Four Winds) Kangome Nfuiry, it is made out of vegetable fibers and
functions as a guide for the prenda spirits.
35 Used for marking the location of the prenda inside the religious room and to anchor or ground
the power of the prenda. also means a graveyard; used to call spirits resting in a graveyard.
36 represents long life, peace, and living in harmony. Used to protect the longevity of humans.
37 Used in the course of a graphic narrative, as part of a larger firma. Used to invoke the power of the
four cardinal points as one.
38 Used in the course of a graphic narrative, as part of a larger firma. Used only at night. When
rituals are performed outdoors, used to prevent disruptions or interference from other spirits or
problems and keep concentration focused in the ritual.
39 represents the earth and all its forces.
40 Used in the course of a graphic narrative, as part of a larger firma. represents the earth and all
its forces.
41 Used in the course of a graphic narrative, as part of a larger firma. Used “to take the corner of
the enemy,” to target a rival location, and to take control of that place. palo monte practitioners
believe that the corner is what protects an individual. To take control over a person’s life, it is first
necessary to take possession of this corner and then to penetrate the spirits that command the
individual’s house.

West: White—purity, perfection

East: Black—underground or death
Center: Blue—(Egáno) indestructible, pure energy, such as morning
dew or rays of the sun, and wholesomeness. It marks the beginning
of the motion of energy and the spiritual journey in the circle.
And like dikenga in Central Africa, nkuyu is linked conceptually to
the sun and its stages. The sun represents the strongest and most brilliant
lucero, or star, and its various points, or stages, are believed to signify indi-
vidual human development and to illustrate the journey through one world
and into the next. In an ever setting and rising cycle, the sun represents the
infi nity of life.
The image in Figure 44, from the Palo Monte Loango branch practiced
in the Cuban provinces of Pinar del Rio and Matanzas, shows a sequence
of different representations of the sun in its five critical stages. These suns,

figUre 44
example of a
sequence of diﬀerent
representations of
the sun, provided by
Osvaldo Fresneda
Bachiller. (From
Bárbaro martínez-
ruiz, personal
collection, 1989.)

representing different times of day, can be used in one of two ways. First,
the suns serve as a form of announcement, a mode of displaying when a cer-
emonial event will take place. Second, when they are drawn within a divi-
nation ritual, the suns inform the subject the time of the day at which an
important approaching event will occur.
From left to right, the fi rst, Lemba, represents from 6:00 A.M. to 10:00
A.M.; the second, Cuna Lemba, from 10:00 A.M. to noon; the third, Dia-
lemba, from noon to 1:00 P.M.; the fourth, Ndoki Lemba, or Brave Sun,
from 1:00 P.M. to 5:45 P.M.; and the fi fth, Vasco, or Winter Sun, from 5:45
P.M. to midnight. In addition, each representation of the sun is related to a
series of numbers that add further meaning in the context of a divination
ritual. In this case, the picture represents God as officiate of the transaction
of energy through the graphic. It also means that an extraordinary thing
will happen in one’s own home by order of God.

dikenga’s journey

The conceptual, theological, and aesthetic parallels in form and meaning

of dikenga between present-day Central Africa and Cuba are clear. Dikenga
can also be used as a powerful example to demonstrate the strong aesthetic
ties between ancient cave paintings and contemporary signs on both sides of
the Atlantic. Because dikenga represents the ultimate graphic design, con-
taining key concepts of Bakongo religious belief, oral history, cosmogony,
and philosophy, and depicting in miniature the Bakongo conceptual world
and universe, it is particularly telling that, as seen in the drawings from
Lovo in Figure 45, dikenga was also centrally and frequently represented
among the signs made by the ancient users of the caves.

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78 K o n g o G r a p h i c Wr i t i n g a n d O t h e r N a r r a t i v e s o f t h e S i g n

f i g U r e 4 5 lovo rupestrian painting. (adapted by the

author from paul raymaekers and hendrik van moorsel,
“lovo: dessins rupestres du Bas-Congo,” Ngonge, Carnets
de sciences humaines, nos. 12, 13, and 14 [léopoldville,
1962]. image courtesy of paul raymaekers and hendrik
van moorsel.)

Adding to the complexity of the study of

this sign is the multitude of ways it has been rep-
resented in the caves. Among the dikenga signs
found in Lovo, the six representations shown
in Figures 46 through 51 illustrate this range
of designs.
Seen collectively, and when compared to the
dikenga signs pictured earlier by Fu-Kiau and
Thompson, it is clear that each of these symbols
illustrates the dikenga cosmogram. Although
the designs are fundamentally similar, the dif-
ferences between them, discussed in the series of examples that follows,
highlight the manner in which such changes are used to convey certain
meanings and to emphasize different component features of dikenga. These
subtle and important differences among the Lovo depictions are partic-
ularly telling insofar as they indicate a high level of comprehension and
a complex process for assigning meaning among the ancient artists who
made them.

46 47 48

49 50 51

f i g U r e S 4 6 – 51 examples of lovo signs, lovo rupestrian painting. (adapted by the

author from paul raymaekers and hendrik van moorsel, “lovo: dessins rupestres du Bas-
Congo,” Ngonge, Carnets de sciences humaines, nos. 12, 13, and 14 [léopoldville, 1962].
image courtesy of paul raymaekers and hendrik van moorsel.)

Example 1
The Lovo dikenga shown in Figure 46 includes several important features.
The horizontal line is sharply drawn, with three lines that cross in the cen-
ter and two concentric circles at each endpoint. The vertical line is crowned
by multiple smaller circles at its two endpoints, a set of three circles at its
north end and two more at its south end. It is believed that three circles
control one’s life, so safety is found in three circles. The image of three cir-
cles is related to the Bakongo proverb that holds, “If something will hap-
pen, you will be told three times.”51 The idea of three is also associated
with love, truth, and justice. Marking the southernmost point with two cir-
cles in this example indicates completion or an ending. The placement of
circle pairs in this design shows the counterclockwise motion of the circle
from this point to its resting place in the west. Two other elements in this
cosmogram are clearly emphasized: the demarcation of the northern point,
which represents the moment of physical, spiritual, and intellectual growth,
and the emphasis of the horizontal kalûnga line reaching beyond the main
circle. The emphasis on the northern point suggests that this represents a
dikenga in the Tukula position, symbolizing the moment of growth, forma-
tion of society, and the highest moment of spiritual and physical develop-
ment. This dikenga shares features with two contemporary representations:
the example in Figure 52 also emphasizes the circular endpoints and is con-
tained within a double circle, while the example in Figure 53 illustrates the
singling out of one cardinal point.

Example 2
The example from Lovo in Figure 48 has a much larger center than other
representations. A large center, emphasizing the center point of the dikenga,
represents perfection and is seen frequently in Chokwe culture. This Lovo
image also differs from the others in that in this position it is not aligned
with a traditional cross, but is instead rotated 45 degrees. Despite this shift,
it is likely that the meaning is the same.

Example 3
The diamond shape in the center of the Lovo dikenga shown in Figure
49 is a sign of God. A diamond signifies Nzambi a Mpungu, and its loca-
tion inside the dikenga indicates protection. The oversized triangles that

f i g U r e S 52 – 53 Two examples
of dikenga sign. (adapted by the
author from K. K. Bunseki Fu-Kiau,
Cosmogonie Congo [Kinshasa:
52 53 Onrd, 1969].)

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80 K o n g o G r a p h i c Wr i t i n g a n d O t h e r N a r r a t i v e s o f t h e S i g n

represent the dikenga’s cardinal points in this example are notable in that
triangular shapes also represent God and imply perfection, a message of
accomplishment emphasized by their size. The large triangles also suggest
a propeller wheel, indicating motion of the sign in the counterclockwise
direction of the ancestors. The propeller is formed by two combinations:
one is composed of the two triangles joined vertically across the diamond’s
center, representing the joining of humans and ancestors with God; the
second is made up of the horizontally facing triangles, which also indicate
motion, dialectic change, and transformation. Together the two axes allow
humans and ancestors to spin and move together as one, protected by God
as they move toward the underworld.
The example of dikenga in Figure 54, from Kuba, shares these char-
acteristics. The diamond center indicates God, and the oversized cardinal
points, although not triangular, form propellers and indicate collective mo-
tion toward the world of the ancestors. The dual spirals in the center of the
diamond also demonstrate centripetal and centrifugal movement. Clémen-
tine Faïk-Nzuji explains the spiral, stating that coming up to the center
from below conveys positive evolution, progress, and growth, and the com-
ing into the center from outside indicates regression and fleeing.52

Example 4
The Lovo dikenga in Figure 50 emphasizes, through its absence, the north
cardinal point. As described earlier, this position on a dikenga represents
maturity or adulthood and can also be used to indicate a warning of dan-
ger.53 The vertical mukula line is depicted here as a tunnel from the world
of the ancestors opening up into the realm of the living. The large circles
representing the remaining three cardinal points indicate protection. Fi-
nally, as in the above depictions, the diamond structure and the emphasized
four triangles represent the force of God. The dikenga in Figure 55, pro-

f i g U r e 5 4 Kuba lembéta sign. (adapted by the

author from Clémentine Faïk-nzuji, Arts africains: Signes et
symboles [Brussels: deBoeck Université, 2000].)

f i g U r e 55 dikenga sign documented by robert Farris

Thompson. (adapted from robert Farris Thompson, The Four
Moments of the Sun [Washington, dC: national Gallery of art,
1981]. image courtesy of robert Farris Thompson, 1969.)

vided by Robert Farris Thompson, also involves four large, prominent cir-
cular points framing a perfect diamond comprising four triangles.

Example 5
The depiction of a Lovo dikenga in Figure 51 is also unique in a couple of
respects. First, it emphasizes the western cardinal point by making it larger
and farther from the center. The western point indicates death and regen-
eration, the reincarnation of living beings, and is also emphasized, through
its absence, in the Cuban dikenga in Figure 32, drawn by Osvaldo Fresneda
Bachiller. Second, the Lovo example strongly demonstrates its counter-
clockwise motion through its streaming, curving points. This sense of mo-
tion is echoed in Fresneda Bachiller’s example as well as in the dikenga
examples by Thompson (Figure 55) and Garcia Villamil (Figure 56).

f i g U r e 5 6 Circle-of-new-life sign. (By Felipe Garcia

villamil. Bárbaro martínez-ruiz, personal collection, 1988.)

manual of rupestrian Signs

Although the sign of dikenga may be the most important of the signs found
in Lovo that are widely used in the present day, it is by no means the only
such example. Table 4 illustrates forty-eight signs found in Lovo and com-
pares them with signs used today in Mbanza Kongo, Angola, and by Palo
Monte priests in Cuba.
A fi nal rupestrian site worthy of mention is Tadi dia Sîmbi (or Ntadi dya
Simbi) (Figure 57). According to Ntinu Nzaku Nevunda, Tadi dia Sîmbi is
a large rock shelter located in the Lovo mountains near the Angola–Dem-
ocratic Republic of the Congo border. Unlike other rupestrian art found
in the Lovo region, the written symbols found in Tadi dia Sîmbi have not
been seen elsewhere. This site is mentioned here for contrast and to further
emphasize both the role played by graphic writing among the ancient peo-
ple of Central Africa and the complexity of its form and use evidenced in
the archaeological record.
Tadi dia Sîmbi is also known as Kuna Mboma (Two Bells) and, accord-
ing to surviving members of the royal family and to local traditional priests,
it was the location used to prepare the body of the deceased king before
passing his power on to the new king. The ceremony in the sanctuary is
called Mpindi a Tadi and is used to elevate the spirit of the king through
a mummification process that takes between five and seven years. It is only

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82 K o n g o G r a p h i c Wr i t i n g a n d O t h e r N a r r a t i v e s o f t h e S i g n

ta b L e 4 Forty-eight signs found in lovo compared with signs used today in mbanza Kongo,
angola, and by palo monte priests in Cuba

Lovo bidimbu firmas firmas (osvaldo

(paul raymaekers) (mbanza Kongo) (felipe garcia villamil) fresneda bachiller)

ta b L e 4 (continued)

Lovo bidimbu firmas firmas (osvaldo

(paul raymaekers) (mbanza Kongo) (felipe garcia villamil) fresneda bachiller)

(continued on next page)

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84 K o n g o G r a p h i c Wr i t i n g a n d O t h e r N a r r a t i v e s o f t h e S i g n

ta b L e 4 (continued)

Lovo bidimbu firmas firmas (osvaldo

(paul raymaekers) (mbanza Kongo) (felipe garcia villamil) fresneda bachiller)

ta b L e 4 (continued)

Lovo bidimbu firmas firmas (osvaldo

(paul raymaekers) (mbanza Kongo) (felipe garcia villamil) fresneda bachiller)

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86 K o n g o G r a p h i c Wr i t i n g a n d O t h e r N a r r a t i v e s o f t h e S i g n

f i g U r e 57 Tadi dia sîmbi rock art. (adapted by the

author from a publication by robert Farris Thompson, Le
geste Kôngo [paris: musée dapper, 2002]. image courtesy of
robert Farris Thompson.)
57.1: rebirth in reference to the king’s soul crossing into
the other world, compromise; 57.2: good guidance,
oﬀering; 57.3: long life and health, intimacy; 57.4: the center
cosmogram that activates the whole drawing and links all
of its parts; 57.5: good agricultural season, seriousness; 57.6:
maturity, wealth, prosperity, and generosity; 57.7: death,
protection.

57.1

57. 2 57. 3 57. 4

57.7

57. 5 57. 6

after the process is completed that the body can be interred in the ground,
at which point the lemba ceremony is performed to crown the new king
and connect him with the traditional spirits. The complex graphic writing
engraved on the surface of the rock in the cave contains instructions for the
performance used to elevate the spirit through the seven levels of existence
of the human soul and both guides and expresses the community’s wishes
for the rule of the new king.
The design is subdivided into seven major parts (see Details 57.1
through 57.7), corresponding to wishes that are expressed during the cere-
mony and are expected to be satisfied during the fi rst year of the new king’s
government. The seven parts symbolize the seven levels of existence, and,
taken as a whole, they represent the constant changes in the two worlds (the
worlds of the living and the dead). The meanings associated with each level
are as follows:

1. Rebirth in reference to the king’s soul crossing into the other world,
compromise
2. Good guidance, offering
3. Long life and health, intimacy
4. The center cosmogram that activates the whole drawing and links all of
its parts
5. Good agricultural season, seriousness
6. Maturity, wealth, prosperity, and generosity
7. Death, protection

Thompson describes in more detail the meaning and use of the center
of the Tadi dia Sîmbi cosmograms (Detail 57.4), writing that the four rect-
angular compartments of this part represent the journey of the spirit of the
dead person during his previous life and into his future as mwanda. The
symbolization

starts in the southwest, moving clockwise in Vumuna state which means

to be born; moves southeast into the Vova stage, which means beginning
and language as a way to start communicating and interacting; moves
northeast into the Vanga state, which means action or the moment of
change and learning, and concludes its journey in the northwest, in the
Vunda state, which means rest or just the arrival to the closing stages
or life.54

Their ornate design, complexity, and continued use, and the systematic,
narrative manner of reading, make the carvings in Tadi dia Sîmbi unique
among known rupestrian sites. Although their age is unknown, their exis-
tence demonstrates a substantial history of complex graphic writing in the
Lovo region. Deserving of far greater study, Tadi dia Sîmbi is particularly
interesting for its foreshadowing of the complex systems of graphic writing
that would later be seen in the New World.

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88 K o n g o G r a p h i c Wr i t i n g a n d O t h e r N a r r a t i v e s o f t h e S i g n

The ancient visual signs and symbols uncovered in archaeological sites

in Central Africa demonstrate the long history of graphic writing among
the Bakongo and their forebears. The continued use in Angola and Cuba
of many of these signs, along with the complex meanings ascribed to them
in both places, makes it clear that their appearance in ancient caves is more
than a coincidence, but rather a demonstrable continuity over time.

Writing to preServe: bidimbU and biSinSU

In this section we explore in detail the way a wide range of written graphic
symbols, known as bidimbu and bisinsu (pl.), with strong similarities to signs
found in the Lovo caves, continue to be used today by the Bakongo peo-
ple who inhabit the region. In particular, we focus on the manner in which
such symbols are used and understood in and around the town of Mbanza
Kongo in northwestern Angola and how they are utilized by the inhabitants
to organize daily activities, communicate with one another, worship God,
and perform and participate in a range of religious ceremonies.

etymology and meaning of dimbu and Sinsú

In Western culture a sign or symbol is generally understood as an evocation,

a representation, and an analogy to, or abstraction of, “reality.” In examin-
ing the use of signs in Bakongo culture, it is useful to explore the more com-
plex and nuanced meaning ascribed to the notion of a symbol. In Kikongo,
the terms dimbu and sinsú (sing.) are both used to mean “symbol,” but they
can be differentiated from one another in a manner important to an under-
standing of the manner in which they graphically express meaning.
The term dimbu comes from the verb dimba, which means “to mark,
signify, imprint, or indicate,”55 and carries spiritual associations, implying
a way of perceiving or recognizing “reality.” The term is used to describe
a symbol that is a metaphor that in turn connotes a manifestation of natu-
ral and spiritual forces and the recognition and recording of such an event.
Matuku Ngame, a Bakongo professor at Yale University, describes bidimbu
as the conceptualization of natural phenomenon such as shooting stars and
a full moon seen during a walk through the rain forest; the understanding
of these events depends on the location in the rain forest and the person
who was able to read and understand the meaning of shooting stars and a
full moon.56 These two independent happenings can be read individually as
well as collectively, but full comprehension is possible only in a certain loca-
tion and by a person who knows the dimensions of the event in relation to
his culture and existence.
For example, among the Luba-Kasai, the “full moon” is associated with
female power, maternity, fecundity, love, beauty, and fertility, and when
used in scarification designs, it symbolizes what women would like to ac-
complish in their lives.57 Similarly, among the Yombe in Cabinda, the moon
is used to allude to female characteristics and is often depicted with the sun

in the designs on carved pot lids to represent the contrast between female
and male identities. When the symbols of the moon and sun appear in the
same frame, they also mean a personal encounter and indicate the differ-
ences between husband and wife. The contrasting yet complementary sym-
bols are seen in the following proverb recorded by José Martins Vaz in his
book Filosoﬁa tradicional dos Cabindas.
Ntangu i Ngonde: The Sun and the Moon:
ba mana dengana, When they are to meet,
bi kundama va mbata. They are in the highest point.58

In other designs the moon is used to indicate a relationship of unequal

power through the way it is positioned in relation to the sun. When the
moon is located near, but below, the sun, the notion that “the moon cannot
pass over the sun”59 delivers the message that people should respect their
position in the hierarchy of society. In a common tomb design (tuziku), the
moon, depicted alongside the symbol of a star, shows that the decedent was
a married man, while the representation of the sun in the same frame means
that he was a noble or had a higher position in society than his wife.60
This abbreviated example of the complex meaning associated with a
viewing of the moon illustrates the breadth and depth of submeanings
brought to bear on the interpretation of the type of symbolic communi-
cations known as dimbu. The previous example of a dimbu symbol con-
notes the entire picture of a person walking through a forest and observing
shooting stars and a full moon. Just as the moon within that picture is laden
with complex meaning, so too are the stars and the forest. Bidimbu thus
act as shorthand for the entire picture, connoting through single symbols
specific events, with all their contextual meaning and cultural implications.
In contrast to dimbu, sinsú conveys more limited meanings. Derived
from the verb sinsa, which means “to commemorate,” “to symbolize,” and
“to remember through a souvenir or vestige,”61 sinsú is used to describe
actual signs that are depicted materially through written marks or carved
physical representations.62 While bidimbu are nonphysical and metaphoric,
bisinsu are used by the Bakongo as a physical register or notation of a concept
and are displayed, among other places, as paintings on a variety of surfaces,
as markings or patterns on textiles, as statuary engravings, or as components
of tomb designs and the carved ornamentation of terra-cotta monuments.63

contemporary bidimbu and bisinsu Usage

Contemporary usage of dimbu and sinsú symbols in Central Africa has not
been thoroughly cataloged or examined, and, with the exception of work
published on Sona writing among the Bachokwe people of eastern Angola
by scholars including Gerhard Kubik, no scholarship has addressed the con-
tinuing role of graphic writing in Bakongo communities. This lack of de-
tailed study has led some to believe erroneously that no comprehensive
graphic writing traditions other than Sona writing remain. Although John

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90 K o n g o G r a p h i c Wr i t i n g a n d O t h e r N a r r a t i v e s o f t h e S i g n

Desmond Clark, Carlos Ervedosa, Camarate França, Henri Breuil, Jef Mor-
telmans, José Redinha, Joaquim Martins, John Turkey, Mário Fontinha,
and Paul Raymaekers and Hendrik van Moorsel have documented archaeo-
logical evidence of sign usage, and Faïk-Nzuji, Fu-Kiau, and Thompson
have recorded the contemporary existence of numerous graphic symbols
in Central Africa, no work has attempted to fully document the systematic
usage of such writing by modern Bakongo.
Research conducted between 2002 and 2010 in Angola’s Zaire province
and part of Bas-Zaire province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
has documented the use of a wide range of graphic writing forms and dem-
onstrated their systematic organization. There is widespread continued use
of, and community enthusiasm for, graphic writing, particularly among the
elders and other members of contemporary religious organizations in and
around Mbanza Kongo, and the research demonstrates that graphic writing
has long been, and continues to be, an important part of the religious and
political lives of members of the royal family, religious leaders, and laypeo-
ple in the wider Mbanza Kongo community.
This research on contemporary uses of graphic writing among the Ba-
kongo has involved close work with numerous traditional political and reli-
gious figures near Mbanza Kongo. These include surviving members of the
former royal government of the Kongo kingdom who, despite official de-
struction of the Kongo kingdom by Portuguese colonialists and the banning
of public religious and social organizations under Angola’s socialist regime,
have continued to safeguard traditional cultural and religious knowledge and
today form a self-described “Traditional Group.” They include Ntinu Nzaku
Nevunda, a priest who was once the royal councilor to the king; Alvaro Bar-
bosa, head of the traditional council; Alfonso Seke, the court’s oral histo-
rian; Paulino Polar, chief of Kwanza Maya (village); and Pedro Savão, chief
of Kinzau Niemo Maya. Other holders and institutions of traditional knowl-
edge in the area include the religion Bundu dia Kongo (BDK), whose priests
include Ne Lisimana Zola, Ne Wanzinga Mpangu, Ne Nzinga Wasiwadimbu,
Ne Keva Difua, and Ne Katembo Zola; the religion Mpeve ya Nlongo and its
prophet, Mayifwila Rafael Rivals; the Botanical House of Spirit and Tradi-
tion and its priest (nganga nkisi), Francisco Lusolo; the Church of Black Peo-
ple in Africa and its prophetic mother (ngudia nganga), Nsenga Alabertina;
and the Kimbanguista Church. These local churches fuse traditional beliefs
with elements of Catholic or Protestant religious scripture.64
Fu-Kiau defi nes communication in the Bakongo world through the con-
cept “Bidimbu ye Nsonokolo za Kongo,” a phrase that translates roughly as
“symbols and ancient Kongo pictographs.”65 Residents of Mbanza Kongo
use a similar concept, “Sinsu kia nguizami,”66 or writing signs, when asked
to defi ne or describe their notion of communication. A fuller translation of
the term nguizami incorporates the concept of symbols of understanding,
the willingness to listen to each other and be reasonable, and friendly dis-
course.67 A less formal term used to refer to graphic writing is “Ndinga i
Sinsu” or “Ndinga Bisinsu,” which literally means “graphic language.”

Examples of the complex uses and understandings of graphic writing

across different religious institutions, secular users, members of the royal
family, and government figures demonstrate a continuity in the aesthetic
and conceptual features of the component signs. Their use across such a
range of distinct yet overlapping realms of society, from secular to religious,
can be organized into three distinct categories:
1. Signs used in agriculture, in hunting, and for the expression of arith-
metic values related to those activities
2. Signs used for location and traveling purposes
3. Signs used to express religious and moral meanings
Among these categories, numerous differences in meaning, style, and
usage of a particular sign exist. Table 5 illustrates the variation in mean-
ing of a selection of signs across religious and secular uses as described by
local priests and members of the traditional Kongo government in Mbanza
Kongo, Angola.
In keeping with their role of holding and expressing specialized knowl-
edge about several traditional and syncretic religious practices, graphic sym-
bols representing the spiritual realm are drawn by hand on the ground in
sacred spaces, painted on walls, engraved in wood and terra-cotta, and used
in the designs of brass objects, musical instruments, tools, bottles, neck-
laces, crowns, and textiles. Another common drawing technique uses natu-
ral clay that is found in four basic colors—white, yellow, red, and black—and
the colors can be used to convey different meanings. Signs are also often
codified through body language, within or outside of a religious perfor-
mance, and by tattoo and scarification procedures. Secular use of the sym-
bols is often more direct and immediate, with signs typically drawn by hand
or drawn on the ground with the use of a stick or branch. Graphic writing
is also used as a way to record information within Bakongo political institu-
tions and economic systems by tying and untying knots on a rope to broad-
cast the state of social problems to the community. This tradition is called
kinkete kia kânga ye Kutulu mâmbu.68
Another important difference between the use of signs in secular and
spiritual contexts is that the style and complexity of graphic writing shifts
substantially between the two realms. In general, graphic symbols em-
ployed in secular settings such as farming, hunting, or traveling are used
as single units, whereas symbols used in religious contexts tend to be used
in a more complex manner. More often than not, in religious contexts mul-
tiple signs are used in a single integrated system to be read holistically.
Within the system, the primary meaning of each sign may be modified as it
is merged with other signs or depicted multiple times. Visual components,
such as the proportion of the elements, repetition of the parts, direction of
the sign, and colors it employs, all function to engage and shape a narra-
tive. In some extreme examples, such elements can be used as charms or bi-
directional amulets for protection against calamity, illness, wild animals,
demons, and insanity.

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92 K o n g o G r a p h i c Wr i t i n g a n d O t h e r N a r r a t i v e s o f t h e S i g n

ta b L e 5 Comparison of meanings for a selection of signs, as oﬀered by local priests and members
of the traditional Kongo government in mbanza Kongo, angola