Illness or deformation mask "idiok ekpo" ·  Nigeria, Ibibio · ID: 3035802

Description

wood, slightly encrusted patina, remains of paint, slit-like hole instead of a nose, pierced around the rim, traces of insect caused damage and abrasion;
used to be danced at masquerades of the “ekpo” society, depicting people suffering of untreated leprosy, gangosa, syphilitic lesions, or mucosal leishmaniasis.

The object Illness or deformation mask “idiok ekpo” with the object ID 3035802 was part of the auction 75th tribal art auction on November 30, 2013. The object with the lot number 95 achieved a sales price of EUR 330 with an asking price of EUR 200.

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.

Comparing literature

Schädler, Karl-Ferdinand, Götter - Geister - Ahnen, München 1992, p. 144 f.