Antilope maske "walu" · Mali, Dogon · ID: 3032617
Christie’s London, “The Late Josef Mueller Collection. Part II”, 20 March 1979, lot 22
Richard Rüegg, Zurich, Switzerland
Description
wood, polychrome paint, protruding facial plane with elongated, rectangular deepened eye-zone, bonnet made from plaited plant fibre, two old collection lables on the rear, pierced around the rim, min. dam., traces of abrasion;
the mask reminds of the mythic antelope “walu”, which was engaged by the creator god “amma” to protect the sun from the fox “yurugu”. To take revenge for his vain effort the fox digged holes in the ground, so that the antelope fell and died. The dance of the mask “walu” should remind of this mythical occurrence. The mask appears during the “dama” commemorative ceremonies which take place every five years together with hundreds of masked dancers.
The object Antilope maske “walu” with the object ID 3032617 was last part of the auction 69th tribal art auction at June 2, 2012 on Zemanek-Münster Auction house. The object with the lot number 167 achieved a sales price of EUR 1,800.
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Comparing literature
Bilot, Alain, Masques du pays Dogon, Paris 2001, p. 68 f.