Elephant spirit mask "ogbodo enyi"
Reginald Groux, Paris, France
Description
heavy wood, remains of polychrome paint, big elephant ears, schematized elephant head, distinctive painting in black and white, separate carved conical eyes, dam., cracks, missing parts (tusks), slight traces of abrasion, small missing parts, base;
Izzi masks are controlled by the four male age groups, at which the members of the senior group owned the biggest examples, which represented the most dreaded and most powerful ghosts. In former times this mask type, which always showed an aggressive and violent behavior, controlled the social order, but nowadays they exclusively appear for entertainment. The holes at the lower rim served for attachment of raphia fibres covering the head of the dancer, who wore a long costume made of plaited plant fibres.