Somewhere in the center of Africa, there was once a tribe called the Mangbetu people who practice the Lipombo which is the weird culture of elongated heads.
Keeping long heads was considered a status symbol among the Mangbetu tribe people
This practice of keeping long heads was stopped long ago by the Belgian colonialists who took over the territory in the early 19th century, it is still an interesting part of African heritage
The Mangbetu are culturally related to the people of the northeastern Democrartic Republic of Congo
At birth, the Mangbetu people wrapped the heads of babies tightly with cloth in order to give their heads the elongated look
Deformation usually begins just a month after birth for the next couple of years until the desired shape has been reached or the child rejects the apparatus
It is easy to recognize Mangbetu figures in African art through their exquisite elongated head figurines
Much of the Mangbetu material culture was probably borrowed from conquered peoples, but the Mangbetu encouraged the development of all the arts of the peoples under their control
The Mangbetu are known for their highly developed art and music. One instrument associated with and named after them is the Mangbetu harp or guitar.