Anthropomorphic face mask

Description

wood, blackish-brown patina, kaolin, red pigment, slightly dam., abrasion of paint.
The small ethnical group of the Nyindu descends from the Lega by whom they adopted structures of the “bwami” society. Anthropomorphic masks, like the present, were displayed by “bwami” members, manipulated, worn attached to the body or sometimes on the face. Even stylistically the influence of the Lega is evident (heart-shaped face/forming of eye zone). The mask depicts a man, possibly the ancestor of a clan.

Comparing literature