Zoomorphic mask "gelede"

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Description

light wood, matt patina, polychrome paint, in form of an antelope head, surmounted by a teeth-revealing leopard, strings for attachment on the underside, rep. (breakage at the right horn), traces of abrasion, small missing parts;
“Gelede” celebrations mostly take place short before the planting of the yams roots. First when the “mothers” are conciliated, the men are able to do the farmwork and hope for a good harvest. The ritual starts by night. A hut of palm leaves is build in the middle of the dance floor, where all the masks were kept and where “iyalasche” provides the dancers with the respective mask.

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Comparing literature

Wastiau, Boris, Medusa, The African sculpture of Enchantment, Geneva 2008, p. 145

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