Zemanek-Münster

Female singer mask "nineagla"

Côte d'Ivoire, Wè - Wobé
sold EUR 1,800
Provenance
Toni Dähler, Basel, Switzerland
H.K. Galerie, St. Gallen, Switzerland (Helene Knill and Hans Koller)
Zemanek-Münster, Würzburg, 11 September 2004, Lot 923
Werner Zintl, Worms, Germany
Size
H: 34 cm
H: 13.4 inch

Description

wood, kaolin, pigments, plant fibre, fabric, human hair, metal, cartridge cases,

Singer masks belong to the category of entertainment masks. They depict beautiful young girls (= “nineagla”), but are worn by boys and young men.

Himmelheber reports that “sometimes quite young boys go through the village with such a mask and only one companion and show their singing art here and there without any special effort”.


Comparing literature

Lorenz Homberger (Hrsg.), Masken der Wè und Dan, Elfenbeinküste, Zürich 1997, p. 25, ill. 13

Subscribe to our newsletter

Join over 10,000 tribal art collectors. Don't miss out on upcoming news and auctions.

Subscribe today