Hx W x D: 34.3 x 18.2 x 7.9 cm (13 1/2 x 7 3/16 x 3 1/8 in.)
Type:
Mask
Geography:
Côte d'Ivoire
Date:
Late 19th century
Label Text:
Among some Islamic Mande peoples, face masks depicting human countenances with complex coiffures perform during Do masquesrades, which are associated with Islamic festivals and ceremonies. Ownership of the masks is vested in the Islamic religious authority.
Description:
Flat faced mask with cut crescent eyes, downward curving two-lobed superstructure and heavy iron staple type repair. Incised parallel lines decorate the forehead on either side and scarification marks adorn the mouth.
Provenance:
Samuel Rubin, New York, before 1964 to 1979
Exhibition History:
African Islam, National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., November 29, 1983-April 22, 1984
Published References:
Bravmann, Rene. 1974. Islam and Tribal Art in West Africa. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 159-160, no. 69.
Bravmann, Rene. 1983. African Islam. London: Ethnographica; Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, p. 64, no. 48.
Freyer, Bryna M. and Christine Mullen Kreamer. 2010. "The Collection of the National Museum of African Art Smithsonian Institution." Sculpture Review LIX (1), p. 20.
Goldwater, Robert. 1964. Senufo Sculpture from West Africa. New York: Museum of Primitive Art; Greenwich: New York Graphic Society, no. 34.
Goodman, Elaine Sooy. 2009. "Warren M. Robbins and the Founding of the National Museum of African Art." Tribal Art XIII:2 (51), p. 90, no. 9.
Park, Edwards. 1983. Treasures of the Smithsonian. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Books, p. 366.
Robbins, Warren M. and Nancy I. Nooter. 1989. African Art in American Collections. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, p. 108, no. 145.
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