Helmet mask "sowei" of the "bundu" society ·  Sierra Leone, Mende · ID: 3033134

Description

light brown wood, blackish brown patina, cylindrical form, a compressed, diamond-shaped face, crowned by a high towering fanciful coiffure with two separate carved birds, plaited plant fibre cuff, min. dam., cracks, minor missing parts, slight traces of abrasion, on wooden base;
such helmet masks are commissioned and worn by women, although carved by men. They are associated with the education and socialization of young females, and their excision ceremonies are supervised by the “bundu” or “sande” societies. Senior woman wear these masks at the termination of initiation ceremonies in order to embody their patron spirit a persona of fecundity and grace, known as “sowei”.

Comparing literature

Mato, Daniel & Charles Miller, Sande, Düsseldorf 1990, p. 125