Anthropomorphic face mask "okuyi" · Gabon, Punu/Tsanghi · ID: 3042971
Emmy Martin, Alsace
Hans Martin (born 1910), son of Emmy Martin
Suzanne Leiberich, née Martin, daughter of Hans Martin
Family estate until today
Description
light wood, white earth “pemba”, traces of red pigment, light brown patina, high vaulted eyebrows, short “snub” nose, protruding lips of prominent form, accentuated by red paint, the face horizontally divided by narrow straps, scarification mark on the forehead, tripartite coiffure, slightly dam., abrasion of paint, minor missing part (left shock of hair).
The style area of the so-called “White masks of the Ogooué” ranges from the area around Lambaréné in the north (Galoa, Enenga, Djumba, Pindji, Iuli/ Lake Zilé) to the Congo in the south (Lumbo, Vili/Kwilu, Punu, Tsanghi), in the east it reaches into the interior to the Tsogho, Sango Ndjabi, Tsanghi, Vuvi and even up to the Wumbu in the Kota territory.
The object Anthropomorphic face mask “okuyi” with the object ID 3042971 was part of the auction 87th Tribal Art Auction on November 11, 2017. The object with the lot number 346 achieved a sales price of EUR 5,500 with an asking price of EUR 3,000.
You can find more Masks and other popular object types on our related topic pages. You may also be interested in our page on African art.
Comparing literature
Schmalenbach, Werner (Hg.), Afrikanische Kunst aus der Sammlung Barbier-Mueller, Genf, München 1988, p. 222 f.
Publications
AHDRC: 0146582