Masque facial anthropomorphe ·  Gabon, Vuvi · ID: 3042966

Description

wood, white earth “pemba”, red pigment, brown patina, plant fibre cord, ovoid flat form, slightly asymmetrical compressed facial features summarized underneath arching brows, small sagittal crest, massive work of carving, the backside just slightly hollowed, slightly dam., minor missing parts (rim of forehead area, eyes), abrasion of paint.
Only litte is known about the usage of Vuvi masks in Central Gabon. They know a mask type which represents the spirit being “moghondzi” and which - announced by the sound of drums - appears only by night. According to J. Bonhomme these “moghondzi” are dead ancestors coming back to visit living people. Their presence is suposedly good, but their direct contact can harm, provoke illness or mental diseases. After usage, the masks were kept in special huts, together with further ritual items.
Possibly present mask is a variation of the “White masks of the Ogooué”.

L’objet Masque facial anthropomorphe avec l’ID d’objet 3042966 a fait partie de la vente aux enchères 87e vente aux enchères Tribal Art dans 11 novembre 2017. L’objet portant le numéro de lot 349 a atteint un prix de vente de 7 000 € pour un prix d’adjudication de 4 000 €.

Vous trouverez d’autres Masques et autres types d’objets populaires sur nos pages thématiques associées. Notre page sur le thème Art africain pourrait également vous intéresser.

Littérature comparée

Schädler, Karl-Ferdinand, Encyclopedia of African Art and Culture, Munich 2009, p. 605 Hahner-Herzog, Iris, Das Zweite Gesicht, Genf, München, New York 1997, p. 74 Julien Bonhomme, Le miroir et le crâne, Parcours initatique du Bwete Missoko (Gabon), Paris 2005