Zoomorphic mask "bonu amwin" · Côte d'Ivoire, Baule · ID: 3032922
Description
wood, polychrome paint, helmet-shaped, carved with disc-shaped circular horns and a box-shaped protruding snout with visible teeth, pierced around the rim, min. dam., fissures, minor missing parts, traces of abrasion;
“bonu amwin” means “god of the woods”. This mask of high authority belongs to the “do” secret society. Women were rigorously excluded from all performances and were not permitted to see the mask. Should a woman see one even by accident, it was said, she is doomed to die.
The object Zoomorphic mask “bonu amwin” with the object ID 3032922 was last part of the auction 69th tribal art auction at June 2, 2012 on Zemanek-Münster Auction house. The object with the lot number 213 achieved a sales price of EUR 600.
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Comparing literature
Barbier, Jean Paul (ed.), Art of Côte d' Ivoire, Catalogue Vol II, Genf 1993, p. 120 ff.