This is the rating and price for Early 20Th C. African Igbo Wooden Maiden Spirit Mask

Description : West Africa, Nigeria, Igbo peoples, ca. early 20th century CE. A hand-carved and hand-painted wooden Maiden Spirit (Agbhoboh mmwo) mask with delicate, balanced facial features, an elaborate hairstyle, and stylized scarification marks that idealize the qualities of youthful females. The Igbo are best known for these Maiden Spirit masks which are danced by men at agricultural festivals as well as funerals of important members of the village, intended to capture the purity, youth, grace, and beauty of deceased maidens. These men who dance the Agbhoboh mmwo masks also traditionally wear colorful fiber costumes to entertain with performances featuring exaggerated versions of traditional women's faces. Custom wooden display stand included. Size: 7.5 W x 12 H (19 cm x 30.5 cm), 17 H (43.2 cm) on included custom stand. This mask is rather striking with its beautiful visage comprised of a narrow face, painted with a chalky-white kaolin pigment to symbolize the spirit of the deceased, a prominent nose, slit eyes, a large, raised dot flanking either eye, cupped ears, an open mouth with delineated teeth, and various tattoo/scarification marks with impressed triangular designs. Her eyes, lips, brows, and ears are delineated with black paint as well. Adding to the dramatic countenance is an elaborate coiffure featuring spiraled curls, a trio of braided lobes, and some rectangular designs in high-relief, all colored in a bituminous black-hued pigment. A beige-hued textile fringe lines the periphery, allowing the dancer to comfortably wear the mask while dancing. The Igbo use a great variety - literally thousands - of masks, which represent and incarnate unspecified spirits or the deceased, forming an extensive community of souls. Perhaps the most outstanding characteristic of the many Igbo masks is their coloring, usually featuring chalk white to symbolize the color of the spirit. Masked dancers traditionally wore extremely elaborate costumes, some also ornamented with mirrors that reflect light when in movement, and often their feet and hands were covered. With their masks, the Igbo have a penchant for contrasting beauty and bestiality, the feminine and the masculine, black and white. The masks are featured in a variety of dramas: sacred rituals (for ancestors and invocation of the gods), social satires, initiation rites, and public festivals. Provenance: private New York, New York, USA collection All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back. A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids. We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience. #132009
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Estimate (low-high) : 2400 USD-3600 USD It's free to register now to view!

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