Dance crest "dagu" for the "niyuo" dance · Côte d'Ivoire, Senufo · ID: 3042988
Glen Rhodes & Harry Nadler, Arlington, USA
Description
wood, brown patina, remains of pigments, helmet-shaped calotte, crowned by stylized cattle and sitting female figure, min. dam., cracks, slight traces of abrasion.
Young men wear the costume of “zeu” in combination with the “dagu” headdress for the “niyuo” masquerade. The horns symbolize cattle, which makes sense, because the young men who have passed “zeu” were looked upon as “nescient” and therefore “scary oxes”. The “niyuo” masquerade prepares the boys for the actual initiation cycle in the “poro” society, which will last for seven years.
The object Dance crest “dagu” for the “niyuo” dance with the object ID 3042988 was last part of the auction 87th Tribal Art Auction at November 11, 2017 on Zemanek-Münster Auction house. The object with the lot number 271 achieved a sales price of EUR 4,200.
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Comparing literature
Guenneguez, André & Afo, Art de la Cote-d'Ivoire et de ses voisins, Paris o.J., p. 107