Ancestor spirit mask "ge"

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Description

wood, blackish brown patina, nail, short roof-like protruding forehead with ridge and chaplet, small eyes with remains of mass, a diamond-shaped mouth with aluminium tooth and clay-like encrustations, drilled holes in two rows around the rim, slightly dam., cracks backside, old collection label “1220” and label of the Segy Gallery;
belonging to the “poro” secret society, where each mask represents a spirit “ge” and has its own name and special role assigned to an officer of the society. The masks were worn in group ceremonies dedicated to the tribe’s tutelary ancestor. In this group performance several different masks represented the elders, the young, the clown, the authority of law and order, the guardian of the earth, the forces of nature, and fertility.

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Comparing literature

Harley, George W., Masks as agents of social control in Northeast Liberia, Milwood 1975, p. 27 f. Bamert, Arnold, Afrika, Olten 1980, ill. 56

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Publications

Segy, Ladislas, Masks of Black Africa, New York 1976, ill. 48

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