Maiden spirit face mask "agbogho mmwo" · Nigeria, Igbo · ID: 3040487
German Private Collection
Fred Jahn, Munich, Germany
Description
wood, matt patina, polychrome paint, sharp cut facial features with thin lips, visible teeth and accentuated scarification marks, crowned by a high-towering openworked coiffure with projecting lobes on both sides, remains of a costume, rep. (breakages coiffure), cracks, small missing parts, slight traces of abrasion, base;
the maiden masks are danced by men, although they honor young marriageable girls and unnamed ancestors. Most subregions in Igbo country feature these maskes, each in its local style. The occasions for such masks to dance in public were many: dry-season festivals, one of which was called “the fame of maidens”; second burial ceremonies. Rites honouring village deities or plentiful harvests. The dancers were clothed in coloured tight costumes with false breasts.
Comparing literature
Wittmer, Marcilene K. & William Arnett, Three Rivers of Nigeria, Atlanta 1978, p. 17, ill. 36
Publications
Schädler, Karl-Ferdinand, Afrikanische Kunst in Deutschen Privatsammlungen, München 1973, p. 205, ill. 285; Jahn, Fred (ed), Kunst aus Schwarzafrika, München 1979, p. 15; Schädler, Karl-Ferdinand, Africana, München 1988, p. 78, ill. F12AHDRC: 0094490