Mask "bonu amwin"
Côte d'Ivoire, Baule
sold
EUR 1,250
Provenance
Maria Wyss, Basel, Switzerland (1964)Swiss Private Collection
Size
H: 46 cm
H: 18.1 inch
Description
wood, polychrome paint, helmet-shaped, carved with disc-shaped circular horns and a box-shaped protruding snout with visible teeth, pierced around the rim, min. dam., cracks, traces of insect caused damage and abrasion;
“bonu amwin” means “god of the woods”. This mask of high authority belongs to the “do” secret society. Women were rigorously excluded from all performances and were not permitted to see the mask. Should a woman see one even by accident, it was said, she is doomed to die.