Dance Mask
Malinke, Mande, West Africa
PROVENANCE: Acquired by Evelyn Annenberg Jaffe Hall, New York, March 25, 1967 from Maurice Ratton, Paris. Then by descent to present owner.

Masks are used for a variety of ceremonial reasons within Malinke culture. Produced in metal, wood, or cloth, the masks are usually used for dances during initiation ceremonies. This particular dance mask is carved out of wood and depicts an abstract combination of a human face combined with that of an antelope. This is common in Malinke masks, as they almost always depict the heads of animals, which have a particular significance to the myths, cosmology, and traditional lore being projected. This mask is geometric in shape and has a beautifully carved patterning that covers both the front and back of the mask.

Height: 12 in. high.
IN 9-15-13 / SOLD