Zoomorphic mask "kono" · Mali, Bamana · ID: 3032636
sold
EUR 1,500
Provenance
Christie’s London, Tribal Art, 22 June 1981, lot 53Richard Rüegg, Zurich, Switzerland
Size
L: 94 cm
L: 37.0 inch
Description
wood, thick encrusted greyish brown sacrificial patina, elongated snout, a package filled with magical mass attached to the forehead by plaited plant fibres, tapering ears, min. dam., traces of abrasion, minor missing parts, rep. (part of the lower jaw replaced);
six Bamana men’s associations hold masking ceremonies that reflect each group’s particular function in the community. Large encrusted masks of the “kono” association are used in ceremonies held to keep civic morality.
Comparing literature
Colleyn, Jean Paul (Hg.), Bamana, Zürich 2001, p. 187