Wooden Miniature Mask

Mano, Liberia
19th-early 20th c

Provenance: Old American collection

Miniature masks bear many names: the most common is ma go (small head), but depending on scholarship it has also be named yi luo po (thing which water is poured over), gba po (thing which is fed), or nyonkula (substitute for the ancestors). Echoing the variety of names, they fulfill a variety of functions. Anyone who has a spiritual connection with a mask, or whose family owns an important mask, is entitled to commission a miniature. Rubbed with oil and food, they are wrapped up and kept on the owner’s body or among his possessions and function as portable and personal forms that share the power and protective force of the full-sized mask.

This mask is very expressive and strong; its mouth boldly extending from its face. It also has an ancient and beautiful, deep lustrous patina. The well-worn piercing at the top of the head is how the owner attached the maskette into their clothes or wore it around their neck.