Anthropomorphic mask ·  Gabun, Tsogho/Punu · ID: 3035441

Description

light wood, kaolin, black paint at the coiffure, narrow see slits underneath gentle vaulted lids with arching eyebrows above; forehead tattoo, delicate nose and stylized mouth arranged in a vertical line, threepartite coiffure with prominent middle lobe, slightly dam., minor missing parts (left eye, middle lobe), paint rubbed off (above all backside);
the idealisation of the facial features, expressing calmness and harmony, the whitening of the face with kaolin and the threepartite coiffure seem to identify the mask as a variation of the “okuyi” masks of the Punu/Lumbo. The arching eyebrows referring to the Tsogho. The planeness and the stylisation of the facial features however reminds of the Vuvi.