Figural headdress

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Description

wood, strong encrusted patina, plant fibre, base

This headdress was probably used for the “ka-elu” masquerade which was performed for fertility purposes prior to the New Yam festival.

At a corresponding event at E-eke in July 1992, more than twenty mask dancers were observed, each representing one particular family of the city. They moved from one family compound to the next t in order to bring blessings from the ancestors and dispel evil spirits.

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Comparing literature

Anderson, Martha G., Ways of the Rivers, Los Angeles 2002, p. 281, ill. 9.7 Compare AHDRC 0144396

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