Helmet mask

Description

wood, black patina, black dyed plant fibre, high cylindrical corpus, the lower half carved with bulging neck rolls, compressed diamond-shaped face, pierced scarification marks, small crest, slightly dam., cracks, abrasion of paint, traces of usage (inside), base;
just like helmet masks of the Mende, the helmet maks of the Vai are associated with the education and socialization of young females, as supervised within the “bundu” or “sande” societies. Senior women wear these masks at the termination of initiation ceremonies in order to embody their patron spirit persona of fecundity and grace, known as “sowei”. The mask embodies the guardian spirit of the society and represents “sande” at all major public occasions