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Kwele Ekuk

TITLE: Kwele Ekuk Mask
TYPE: face mask
GENERAL REGION: Africa
COUNTRY: Gabon
ETHNICITY: Kwele
DESCRIPTION: Ekuk Plank Mask
CATALOG ID: AFGA001
MAKER: Unknown
CEREMONY: Be’ete Society
FUNCTION: Adult Initiation; Funeral: Protection; Spirit Invocation
AGE: 1960s
MAIN MATERIAL: wood
OTHER MATERIALS: kaolin clay

The Kwele, also known as Kwese, people of Gabon and the Democratic Republic of Congo now live between the Dja and Ivindo rivers. Social control is exercised by the Be’ete (or Bwete) Secret Society, which uses masks to adult initiation rituals, funerals, and protection of the village from malicious spirits.  The masks embody protective bush spirits, with the antelope a dominant presence among them.  Kaolin clay is nearly always used in Kwele masks, because its white color has spiritual meaning to the Kwele.

This specific mask represents an ekuk, or forest spirit.

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Guro Gu Mask

TITLE: Guro Gu Mask
TYPE: face mask
GENERAL REGION: Africa
COUNTRY: Côte d’Ivoire
ETHNICITY: Guro
DESCRIPTION: Gu mask with lion attacking antelope
CATALOG ID: AFCI020
MAKER: Unknown
CEREMONY: Celebration; Entertainment; Funeral
AGE: early 2000s
MAIN MATERIAL: wood
OTHER MATERIALS: oil-based paint

The Guro gu mask represents a beautiful young woman. It forms part of the trio of sacred masks with the zamble and zaouli. In the past, gu was the wife of zamble, but in modern rituals she is represented as the wife of zaouli, and therefore zamble‘s mother. All three masks are cult objects to which sacrifices are periodically made to bring prosperity to the family that owns them and to drive away evil spirits.  They are danced for celebrations and as entertainment, and also at funerals and to honor ancestors. The gu represents a divinity, but her dance careens about, stamping her feet incessantly. She wears bells on her ankles to accentuate her foot movements and dances to the music of a few flutes.

This mask portrays a lion attacking an antelope on the crest.

For more on Guro masking traditions, see Eberhard Fischer, Guro (Prestel, 2008) or Anne-Marie Bouttiaux, Guro (5 Continents Editions, 2016).

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Yao Shaman Mask

TITLE: Yao Shaman Mask
TYPE: face mask
GENERAL REGION: Asia
COUNTRY: Vietnam
SUBREGION: Northern Vietnam
ETHNICITY: Yao
DESCRIPTION: Shaman Mask
CATALOG ID: ASVN001
MAKER: Unknown
CEREMONY: Shamanic rituals
FUNCTION: healing; hunting; protection; spirit invocation
AGE: ca. 1960s
MAIN MATERIAL: wood
OTHER MATERIALS: dyed rice paper

The Yao people inhabit southern China and northern Vietnam, with small enclaves in Thailand, Burma, and Laos. They have syncretic Daoist and animist religious beliefs. Yao shamans use wooden masks to invoke god spirits for protection or successful hunting expeditions. Shamans may also use the masks to heal the sick.

Yao masks often include a “horn” on top of the head that some speculate mimics the topknot (ushnisha) worn by the Buddha. Some Yao masks are painted, but because many Yao lack access to paint, they often cover their masks with dyed paper, as they have done here.

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Tarahumara Chaperon Mask

TITLE: Tarahumara Chaperon Mask
GENERAL REGION: Latin America
COUNTRY: Mexico
SUBREGION: Chihuahua
ETHNICITY: Tarahumara
DESCRIPTION: Chaperon Mask
CATALOG ID: LAMX013
MAKER: Unknown
CEREMONY: Danza de los Matachines; Pascola; Agriculture; Healing; Funeral
AGE: early 1960s
MAIN MATERIAL: wood
OTHER MATERIALS: goat leather and hair; iron nails

The Tarahumara are the largest indigenous ethnic group in Chihuahua, Mexico. Among their rituals are the Dance of the Matachines, in which dancers invoke spirits to ensure a good harvest. The dance is performed by a eight to twelve couples to the music of violins, guitars, and flutes. Chaperones, the only masked characters, mark the rhythm by yelling and also ensure all the dancers wear the right garments.

Such masks may also be used in pascola dances celebrating religious holidays, such as the Feast of the Epiphany (January) or Holy Week (February or March). Masked dances may also be used to pray for rain or heal, the sick, or at funerals.

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Guro Zamble

TITLE: Guro Zamble
TYPE: face mask
GENERAL REGION: Africa
COUNTRY: Côte d’Ivoire
ETHNICITY: Guro
DESCRIPTION: Zamble Mask
CATALOG ID: AFCI001
MAKER: Unknown
CEREMONY: Celebration; Entertainment; Funeral
AGE: ca. 1960s
MAIN MATERIAL: wood
OTHER MATERIALS: paint

The Guro zamble mask represents a mythical animal resembling a cross between an antelope and crocodile.  It forms part of the trio of sacred masks with the gu and zaouli. In the past, gu was often presented as the wife of zamble, but in modern rituals she is usually represented as the wife of zaouli, which would make her zamble‘s mother. All three masks are cult objects to which sacrifices are periodically made to bring prosperity to the family that owns them and to drive away evil spirits.  In the past, the zamble may have been a “witch-hunter,” but today they are danced for celebrations and as entertainment, and also at funerals and to honor ancestors.  In this latter context, zamble is especially important, because it is the only nature spirit caught and tamed by an ancestor of the Guro people.

For more on Guro masking traditions, see Eberhard Fischer, Guro (Prestel, 2008) or Anne-Marie Bouttiaux, Guro (5 Continents Editions, 2016).

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Piaroa Warime Mask

TITLE: Piaroa Warime Mask
TYPE: crown mask
GENERAL REGION: Latin America
COUNTRY: Venezuela
SUBREGION: Orinoco River Basin
ETHNICITY: Piaroa
DESCRIPTION: De’aruwa Ime
CATALOG ID: LAVE001
MAKER: Unknown
CEREMONY: Warime Ritual
AGE: 1980s
MAIN MATERIAL: bark cloth
OTHER MATERIALS: wicker; dried grass; beeswax; pigment

The Piaroa people inhabit the Orinoco River Basin region of Venezuela and northern Brazil. They are an extremely peaceful people with a political structure that anthropologists describe as nearly anarchic.

The warime ceremony is the biggest festival of Piaroa society. It includes a purification ritual in which masqueraders represent animal spirits and proclaim their deeds of the year to the tribe, good and bad, to seek respectively praise or forgiveness. This mask is called De’aruwa Ime and is worn straight up on the head, with macaw feathers coming out of the top, with the face and body covered in a dried plant fiber suit. Some believe this mask to represent a peccary. Other De’aruwa masks may represent a monkey, vampire bat, or bee (redyo). Masqueraders must receive religious instruction from a shaman beforehand, and his incantation is accompanied by music on traditional instruments.

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Leyak Mata Besik

TITLE: Leyak Mata Besik
TYPE: face mask
GENERAL REGION: Asia
COUNTRY: Indonesia
SUBREGION: Bali
ETHNICITY: Balinese
DESCRIPTION: Leyak Mata Besik
CATALOG ID: ASID023
MAKER: Ida Ketut Berati (Singapadu, 1967- )
CEREMONY: Calonarang Dance Drama
AGE: 2013
MAIN MATERIAL: pule wood
OTHER MATERIALS: oil paint; horsehair; gold-plated silver; semi-precious stones; string; rubber strap

The Calonarang dance drama centers around the character known as Rangda (also called Calonarang), who is the queen of witches and represents the Hindu goddess of death, Durga. Each village in Bali has a temple honoring the dead, dedicated to Durga. A performance of Calonarang is rare today, but it may commemorate the anniversary of a temple, or it may be used to purify a village if a disease epidemic appears. Rangda challenges the local witches (leyak) to a display of power, and if she prevails, they must stop inflicting ills on the village. Calonarang also serves to educate about Indonesian history and entertain the audience.

Rangda has a number of leyak followers. They are believed to haunt graveyards, devour corpses, and have the power to fly and morph themselves into animals. This specific mask represents Leyak Mata Besik, a witch who has studied black magic under Rangda’s tutelage. The mask was carved and painted by the master craftsman I. Ketut Berati of Singapadu.

For more on Balinese masks, see Judy Slattum, Masks of Bali: Spirits of an Ancient Drama (San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 1992).

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Baule Klolo Mask

TITLE: Baule Klolo Mask
TYPE: face mask
GENERAL REGION: Africa
COUNTRY: Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast)
ETHNICITY: Baule
DESCRIPTION: Klolo (Elephant) Mask
CATALOG ID: AFCI014
MAKER: Unknown
CEREMONY: Purification; Spirit Invocation
AGE: ca. 1970s-1980s
MAIN MATERIAL: wood
OTHER MATERIALS: kaolin clay

Before major festivals, the Baule people sometimes dance masks representing potent animal spirits to purify the village. This mask represents the revered elephant and is known as klolo, or sometimes lébé.  The abstraction of this specific elephant mask is striking and greater than usual among its type.  It is likely that this mask is used in much the same way as the zi mask of the southern (Dje) Guro people, to which the klolo bears a strong resemblance. The zi mask represents a powerful spirit tamed by the village that is used to purify the village of harmful spirits, especially witchcraft.

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Chokwe Mwana Pwo

TITLE: Chokwe Mwana Pwo
TYPE: face mask
GENERAL REGION: Africa
COUNTRY: Congo, Dem. Rep. of
ETHNICITY: Chokwe
DESCRIPTION: Mwana Pwo (Young Woman) Mask
CATALOG ID: AFCD009
MAKER: Unknown
CEREMONY: Entertainment; Spirit Invocation
AGE: ca. 1980s-1990s
MAIN MATERIAL: wood
OTHER MATERIALS: string

The populous Chokwe people of Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Zambia are known as some of the most skilled wood carvers in Africa. They resisted colonization far longer than most peoples of the region, despite repeated incursions by the Portuguese and other Europeans.

The Chokwe use masks in many contexts. The mwana pwo (young woman) mask invokes the spirit of a female ancestor in her most beautiful youth. The dark skin, decorative forehead and cheek scars, high forehead, narrow nose, and filed teeth represent the idealized Chokwe female. The mwana pwo is mostly danced for purposes for entertainment at festivals, but it is thought to increase the fertility of the women who attend.

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Baule Bo Nun Amuin

TITLE: Baule Bo Nun Amuin
TYPE: face mask
GENERAL REGION: Africa
COUNTRY: Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast)
ETHNICITY: Baule
DESCRIPTION: Bo Nun Amuin Mask
CATALOG ID: AFCI016
MAKER: Unknown
CEREMONY: Funeral; Protection; Social Control; Spirit Invocation
AGE: ca. 1980s
MAIN MATERIAL: wood
OTHER MATERIALS: pigment

The Baule are a relatively large ethnic group inhabiting the eastern Côte d’Ivoire and parts of Ghana. They have a variety of masking traditions, but their most religiously important is the bo nun amuin. Bo nun amuin, translated roughly “god risen from the bush,” are sacred masks worn only by men. They channel powerful bush spirits and as such are used at funerals of village notables, to protect the village from external threats, and to instill discipline and punishment on violators of customs, especially women. They are danced to the sound of a loud bull-roarer, to warn women and children not to watch.

In the past, bo nun amuin were kept in shrines outside of the village, but now are brought to bush shrines on the day before the dance. The men formerly appear naked before the masks to assure the spirit of their masculinity, but today they simply drop their pants when they approach the masks. Before crossing the shrine’s threshold palm wine or gin will be poured over it, and then spat onto the mask as an offering to the mask spirit. Before the 1970’s, war prisoners were sacrificed to the spirit, but today animals such as dogs or chickens are used.  The society eats the sacrificial meat, and then the heart and liver of the animal is spat on the mask as an offering. The dancer is bathed and puts on protective amulets, blade shaped bark around his hands and knees, and rattles on his feet. The society next evokes the spirit by singing, and the mask can then leave the shrine for the dance. After the dance, the men shout “k buno,” “go back to the bush,” to usher the potentially dangerous spirit out of the village.

Bo nun amuin masks have varied forms, but they tend to assume the form of a mythological beast combining attributes of an antelope and leopard, sometimes with anthropomorphic features as well. The resemblance to the kponyungo or “fire spitter” funerary mask of their Senufo neighbors is sometimes striking. This specific mask has the relatively unusual shape of an abstract, elongated warthog.

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