Anthropomorphic face mask · D. R. Congo, Bakongo-Yombe · ID: 3048823
sold
EUR 1,500
Size
H: 28 cm
H: 11.0 inch
Description
wood, cracks
This mask features particularly large, semi-circular cut-out eye openings. A striking detail is the small tongue.
A comparable mask in this respect is classified by Lehuard (Arnouville 1993, p. 790, 5.4.2.1) as “nganga diphomba,” a mask type associated with diviners. In this case, the present mask originally must have been painted with colored pigments (red, white and black) and must have had a whitened eye zone, a characteristic of this mask type, which was supposed to give clairvoyance to its wearer.
Comparing literature
Lehuard, Raoul, Art Bakongo, Les Masques, Arnouville 1993, p. 790, 5.4.2.1 Felix, Marc L. (ed.), Kongo Kingdom Art, China 2003, p. 222