Zoomorphic helmet mask "vaa-bong" · Nigeria, Northeastern, Benue Valley, Mumuye · ID: 3046760
sold
EUR 1,200
Provenance
Zemanek-Münster, Würzburg, 17 September 2011, Lot 320German Private Collection
Size
H: 46 cm
H: 18.1 inch
Description
wood, pigments, base
These helmet masks are documented by photographs taken by Arnold Rubin in the late 1960s and early 1970s in Zinna, Pantisawa and other Mumuye towns south of the Benue River
In his fieldnotes, he links “vaa-bong” performances to agricultural cycles as well as initiation and other male-oriented events including funerary ceremonies, armed conflict and beer making.
Comparing literature
Berns, Marla C. et. al., Arts of the Benue River Valley, Los Angeles 2011, p. 354 ff.
Publications
AHDRC: 0158332