Zaire is the country currently known as the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The king of Zaire is a painting that shows the artistic mind the Zairians are so well known for on the African continent. Here a Kuba king is dressed in a “Labot Latwod”, witch is an outfit made of fig tree bark soaked and treated to make it as smooth as wool; it is topped with a string of shells. He wears a necklace made of leopard teeth and holds a flyswatter made with elephant tail hair.

TM