Mask "koma ba"
Armand Arman, Paris/New York, France/USA
Description
brown patina, partly encrusted (presumably sacrificial blood), remains of pigments, massive beak-like projection below the chin, forehead nail, pierced around the rim, min. dam., cracks, slight traces of abrasion, on metal base;
the “koma” of the Mau, a population living in a region of wooded savanna to the north of the Dan lands, is an initiation society that apears to be heir to societies of this type among the Bamana. “Koma ba”, a fierce detector of sorcery, sings and dances to attract evil spirits. Her male counterpart, the crude “koma su”, whose cries fill the night, destroys evil spirits by hunting them down in the bush, armed with a lance and a sword. Both masks are only allowed to be seen by the initates. They were kept in a sacred hut at the heart of the sacred enclosure and were objects of sacrifices. The preferred offerings are dogs, which are sacrificed and then ritually eaten by the initiates.