Object Details
- Label Text
- This mask exhibits stylistic features from several Congo groups: the bulging, flattened eyes of Yaka figures, the elongated nose of Zombo masks and the surrounding plaque-like extension of Nkanu initiation masks. The mask may have been used to protect initiation camps.
- Description
- Wood face mask with bulging, flattened eyes, an elongated nose and a surrounding plaque-like extension. The face is painted blue from the lower eyelids to the chin. Traces of white pigment are visible on the upper eyelids and above and below the chin. Three vertical scarification marks are on each cheek.
- Provenance
- Michael Wolf, 1978
- Emile M. Deletaille, Brussels, 1978 to 1985
- Content Statement
- As part of our commitment to accessibility and transparency, the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art is placing its collection records online. Please note that some records are incomplete (missing image or content descriptions) and others reflect out-of-date language or systems of thought regarding how to engage with and discuss cultural heritage and the specifics of individual artworks. If you see content requiring immediate action, we will do our best to address it in a timely manner. Please email nmafacuratorial@si.edu if you have any questions.
- Image Requests
- High resolution digital images are not available for some objects. For publication quality photography and permissions, please contact the Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives at https://africa.si.edu/research/eliot-elisofon-photographic-archives/
- Data Source
- National Museum of African Art
- Maker
- Tsotso artist
- Date
- Late 19th to mid-20th century
- Credit Line
- Museum purchase
- Medium
- Wood, pigment
- Dimensions
- H x W x D: 29.2 x 14.6 x 10.2 cm (11 1/2 x 5 3/4 x 4 in.)
- Type
- Mask
