Antelope dance crest "tjiwara" · Mali, Bamana · ID: 3035425
Swiss Private Collection
Description
wood, brown patina, vertical (male) type, stylized body, the elegant swing of the neck repeated by the mane which is arranged in three bows, rep. (breakage at the neck and at the left horn tip), slight traces of abrasion, socle;
the “tjiwara” masquerades were performed at the beginning and ending of the agrarian cycle. The religious and social life of the Bamana people was determined by six initiation communities. Each level of initiation was represented by a special mask type. The “tijwara” headdress belongs to the fifth level. Its members had to encourage a good harvest by celebrating their masquerades.The masks used to appear in pairs male-female, symbolizing the sun and the earth and their meaning for human life.
Comparing literature
Colleyn, Jean Paul (Hg.), Bamana, Zürich 2001, p. 209, ill. 187