Helmet mask "gelede" · Nigeria, Yoruba · ID: 3043493

Name: Helmet mask "gelede"
SKU: 3043493
Availability: Discontinued

not available anymore

Provenance

Laurits Sunde, Copenhagen, Denmark
Jan Lundberg, Malmö, Sweden

Size

L: 34,5 cm

L: 13.6 inch

Description

wood, brown patina, black paint, traces of indigo blue and white pigment, drilled pupils, nose and ear holes, lancet-shaped tribal marks on forehead and cheeks, slightly dam., minor missing parts, cracks.
“Gelede” festivals are held on the arrival of the early spring rains and are performed in honour of “our mothers” - “awon iya wa”, also referred to as “our mothers, the witches - “awon iya wa aje”. They have been described as real spectacles with an enormous variety of headdresses and costumes.

The object Helmet mask “gelede” with the object ID 3043493 was last part of the auction 88th Tribal Art Auction at March 10, 2018 on Zemanek-Münster Auction house and had the lot number 337.

You can find more Masks and other popular object types on our related topic pages. You may also be interested in our page on African art.