Rare anthropomorphic helmet mask "okpatonu" ·  Nigeria, Benue, Alago (Idoma Nokwu) · ID: 3052292

Description

wood, pigments,

A mask that is very similar in form and style was photographed by Rubin in Keana in 1971 (cf. Berns, 2011, p. 72, ill. 2.37 ).

According to S. L. Kasfir, this mask, called “okpatonu”, is “a crude version of a type associated with both Jukun and Igala”. According to Kasfir, these appear to be variants of the same type of mask, which occurs at both ends of a 200-mile stretch from the middle Benue to the confluence.

The object Rare anthropomorphic helmet mask “okpatonu” with the object ID 3052292 was last part of the auction Auction 105 at November 15, 2025 on Zemanek-Münster Auction house. The object with the lot number 300 achieved a sales price of EUR 800.

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Comparing literature

Berns, Marla C. et. al., Arts of the Benue River Valley, Los Angeles 2011, p. 72