Female ancestor spirit mask "mwana phwevo"
Angola / Zambia, Luena (Lwena / Lovale)
sold
EUR 1,100
Provenance
Peter Loebarth, Hameln, GermanyHermann Sommerhage, Duisburg, Germany
Werner Zintl, Worms, Germany (2007)
Size
H: 21 cm
H: 8.3 inch
Description
wood, pokerwork, cord material (hemp), rattan, base
The name of the mask “mwana phwevo” - “young woman”, refers to a mythical female person who died early and whose painful loss is to be recalled by the dance of the mask.
Her face with its strikingly luxuriant hairstyle corresponds to the common ideal of beauty. The eyes, which are always narrowed to slits, are meant to indicate that a dead person is depicted.
“Mwana phwevo” masks are danced by men. According to Hahner-Herzog, they appear at various festive occasions to entertain the villagers, especially the women, with graceful dances that often have sexual connotations.
Comparing literature
Hahner-Herzog, Iris, Das Zweite Gesicht, Genf, München, New York 1997, cat. 86Publications
AHDRC: 0001523