Description:

Central Africa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Salampasu peoples, ca. first half of the 20th century CE. An intriguing mask formed from tightly-woven reed fibers and decorated with a hanging raffia beard. The stylized countenance boasts a bulbous nose, a puffy forehead, wide cheeks, slender ovoid eyes, and petite woven-reed rings applied to the temples. The coiffure is composed of dozens of knotted bulbs, and the head is topped with a conical headdress that displays repeating registers of red-orange and white triangles outlines with thin twisted strings. Though masks like this example are used within the Idangani society of the Salampasu, scholars are still unsure as to their exact purpose. Size (w/o beard): 8.75" W x 14.8" H (22.2 cm x 37.6 cm); 30" H (76.2 cm) on included custom stand.

For a stylistically-similar example with a longer beard, please see: Hahner-Herzog, Iris, Maria Kecskesi, and Laszlo Vajda. "African Masks from the Barbier-Mueller Collection, Geneva." Prestel Verlag, Munich, 2002, p. 274, cat. no. 219.

Provenance: private New York, New York, USA collection; ex-Thomas Murray collection, California, USA

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#147690

  • Condition: Light loosening to some fibers, otherwise intact and excellent. Original pigmentation still visible and vibrant.

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July 25, 2019 7:00 AM MDT
Louisville, CO, US

Artemis Fine Arts

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