Lot: 305

87e vente aux enchères Tribal Art

Masque de vache Bush

Nigéria, Mumuye

Provenance Taille Prix d’appel / Prix d'Estimation
H: 50 cm 1500 EUR
Frais supplémentaires : 27% de commission, TVA, expédition et assurance transport

wood, kaolin, red pigment, of typical massive form, carved with a big snout, forehead crest and strong horns, min. dam., missing parts (horn tips), fine cracks, paint rubbed off, base.
Secret societies in groups all along the Benue employ horizontal masks representing bush cows and other animals. The general concept of the mask seems to be to place powerful and aggressive bush creatures at the service of human society and to provide protection for crops and man. They may also appear at important ceremonies such as installations and funerals of chiefs and secret-society initiations.


Schädler, Karl-Ferdinand, Lexikon Afrikanische Kunst und Kultur, München, Berlin 1994, p. 288