Mask "okoroshi oma" · Nigeria, Igbo · ID: 3035754
Heinz Kolerski, Fellbach near Stuttgart, Germany
Description
wood, kaolin, black paint, characteristic laughing mouth, abrasion of paint, slightly dam., missing parts backside at the rim;
this mask type appears at so-called “okoroshi” ceremonies, which are connected with rituals for deities or spirits of the water “owu”. During the rainy season all activities come to rest for about a month, in order to celebrate the appearance of the water spirits. Two groups of dancers are posted opposite to each other: those who encorporate the good spirits “okoroshi oma” or “beautiful ghosts”, whose masks and costumes were dyed in white and on the opposite - those who encorporate the evil spirits “okoroshi ojo” or “malicious, dark ghosts”, whose faces are blackened.
The object Mask “okoroshi oma” with the object ID 3035754 was last part of the auction 75th tribal art auction at November 30, 2013 on Zemanek-Münster Auction house. The object with the lot number 96 achieved a sales price of EUR 1,000.
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