Rare old dance mask "asu nkukh"
Gabon, Fang
sold
EUR 9,000
Provenance
Leo Frobenius, Berlin, Germany, collected in situ, 1912Galerie Gerd Rosen, Berlin, Germany
Gerd Rosen became the pioneer dealer in “Nachkriegsavantgarde” German artists, when he opened his gallery on August 9th in 1945.
Aside of Modern Art he delt with African Art and made expo with catalogue on African Art in 1947: “Negerplastik” (Gerdt Kutscher).
Size
H: 27 cm
H: 10.6 inch
Description
light wood, remains of black patina, cap-shaped, a large facial plane, high arching eyebrows in pokerwork, overlong narrow nose bridge, striking small eyes and mouth, flat quartered coiffure, cuff of grass fibre bunches at the lower rim, slightly dam., abrasion of paint (coiffure), plant fibres slightly brittle because of old age, metal base;
the large face with the heart-shaped deepened eye zone gives the mask a kind of “moon-like” look, which is why Perrois feels reminded of the “ngontang” mask type, which could be traced back far into times. Presumably even present mask originally was dyed with lime, which was cleaned according to the spirit of time. The specific hairstyle is proofed by travellers until the 1920’s.