Helmet mask with board-shaped superstructure "nwenka"
Burkina Faso, Bobo
sold
EUR 3,500
Provenance
Ketterer, Munich (1980s)Franz Müller-Steinfurth, Speyer, Germany
Helmut Bruchner, Munich, Germany (2008)
Size
H: 96 cm
H: 37.8 inch
Description
wood, colour pigments, black mass, rest., base
The “nwenka” mask is one of the oldest and most sacred wooden masks that perform at Bobo masquerades. Tradition claims it dated from the time of creation when “wuro”, the Creator God, molded the world from moist clay and made creatures to inhabit it.
The “nwenka” masked dance imitates “wuro’s” creating the world. The masks are worn with a costume of thick fibres.