Passport mask "ma go" in case · Côte d'Ivoire, Dan · ID: 3035838
Heinz Kolerski, Fellbach near Stuttgart, Germany
Description
wood, shiny blackish brown patina, kaolin, with narrow eyes and forehead tattoo, small case of raffia cloth, spread with mass on the outside, min. dam., slightly frayed;
such miniature masks are possessed by individuals who usually keep them carefully hidden in a pocket or in a kind of cloth or raffia case, like private objects endowed with the power to protect the owner. The minimask is kept as if it were a kind of portable personal altar on which one performs sacrifices in order to propitiate its powers and reinforce the potent but also volatile magical energy which it carries.The palm oil with which the mask is periodically rubbed, confers a much appreciated patina on it.
Comparing literature
Tagliaferri, Aldo, Miniature masks from West Africa, Milan 1997, 18 ff.