Zemanek-Münster

Large helmet mask "goli glen" ·  Côte d'Ivoire, Baule/Wan · ID: 3040979

sold EUR 1,800
Provenance
Alain Dufour, Saint Maur, France
Size
H: 63 cm
H: 24.8 inch

Description

wood, red, black and white paint, typical form with undercut arched structure on the forehead, slightly dam. (nose), missing parts (helmet), rep. (both horn tips), abrasion of paint, base;
the Baule people adopted “goli” between 1900 and 1910 from the Wan, a small Mande-speaking group related to the Guro. According to S. Vogel, the feather in the nose is meaningful in the Wan version of the “goli” dance, but seldom included by the Baule (Vogel, 1997, p. 174).
“Goli” is a day-long spectacle that normally involves the whole village and includes the appearance of four pairs of masks, music played, and ideally, the joyous consumption of a great deal of palm wine. “Goli” can be performed both as an entertainment and for the funerals of important men. “Goli glen”, the senior male mask, is the second pair of masks to appear. It is said to combine antelope and crocodile features. It is distinguished from other “goli” masks by the playing of the “tre” horn during the dance. “Glen” wears a large antelope skin on its back and a fresh green palm-fiber cape, which takes several men a couple of hours to prepare and is very heavy to wear. He does a rapid, vigorous stamping dance that is rather wild-looking but never uncontrolled.


The object Large helmet mask “goli glen” with the object ID 3040979 was last part of the auction 84th Tribal Art Auction at November 5, 2016 on Zemanek-Münster Auction house. The object with the lot number 191 achieved a sales price of EUR 1,800.

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.


Expertise

Certificat d' Authenticite, Alain Dufour, St Maur, 12.01.2002


Comparing literature

Vogel, Susan Mullin, Baule, African Art - Western Eyes, New York 1997, p. 174


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