Artwork Page for Helmet Mask

Details / Information for Helmet Mask

Helmet Mask

early 1900s
Measurements
Overall: 33 x 63.5 x 41.9 cm (13 x 25 x 16 1/2 in.)
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view

Description

Deliberately distorted and exaggerated facial features reflect the awesome powers of a great chief. The quadrupeds on the mask’s head suggest the close association between the leopard and the king. In the Cameroon grasslands, masks are typically related to a regulatory society that guards ancestral mores; society members wear the masks and dance in the secrecy of the night.
A dark wood mask features an elongated face topped with five thick, downward-curving forms. Large tan ovals frame horizontal slit eyes above a long nose flaring with red nostrils. The wide mouth reveals rows of light-colored, peg-like teeth. Small rectangular ears project from the sides. The dark, weathered surface is marked by a vertical split at the center of the bottom jaw.

Helmet Mask

early 1900s

Africa, Central Africa, Cameroon, possibly Kom-style maker

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