Mask "bangoro go"

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Description

wood, slightly encrusted, dark brown patina, of oval form with pointed chin, dominated by a long, raised nose ridge with broad, edged nostrils, flanked by rectangular, open-worked eyes, the mouth only indicated, remains of cord and plant fibre at the back, small missing parts, insect caused damage, slight traces of abrasion, rep. (metal clamps on top of the head), base;
comparable objects: Sotheby’s, New York, November 11, 2005, lot 48; Christie’s, Paris, November 10, 2003, lot 257;
Patrick Gerard probably was the first who classified these masks as belonging to the Senufo (not Bamana), living in the border region of Mali and the Ivory Coast. Present mask type appears at a masquerade called “kpoumouroh”, taking place every seven years.

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Comparing literature

Elmer, Artur & Heidrun, Afrika Begegnung, Viersen 2002, p. 65, ill. 56

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Publications

Goy, Betrand, Arts anciens du Mali, Paris 2007, p. 163; van de Velde, Lucien & Joanna Teunen, Abstraction in African Art, Antwerp 2010

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Exhibition

"Arts Anciens du Mali", Galerie Renaud Vanuxem, 12 Septembre - 17 October, 2007, Paris, France

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