Location

108A Sub-Saharan

Description

It seems that this type of object--once used among various peoples in the region--could have served both as a shrine and as a dance headdress. It would only have been part of a dance when a sacrifice to the ancestors was needed, at a funeral, or during a male initiation. Despite obvious animal references, the type represents an invented composite being that some described as a creature of the sea.

Provenance

Katherine White Reswick

Citations

Petridis, Constantijn. South of the Sahara: selected works of African art. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2003. Reproduced: cat. 5, p. 40 - 41

Robbins, Warren M. African Art in American Collections = L'art Africain Dans Les Collections Americaines. New York: F.A. Praeger, 1966. Reproduced: p. 71, no. 50

Robbins, Warren M. African sculpture. Atglen, PA: Schiffer Pub, 2005. Reproduced: p. 71, no. 50

Curtis, Marie Yvonne. Baga. Milan, Italy : 5 Continents Editions, 2018. Reproduced: p. 91, pl. 25; mentioned: pp. 46, 125

Exhibition history

CMA 1968: "African Tribal Images: The Katherine White Reswick Collection," cat. no. 45, repr.

CMA 1970: "Year in Review 1969," CMA Bulletin LVII Jan., 1970), p. 47, no. 127, repr. p. 38.

Year in Review: 1969. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (January 27-February 22, 1970).

The Cleveland Museum of Art

Helmet Mask (tönköngba or tabakän)

Africa, West Africa, Guinea, possibly Landuma-style carver

Location

Description