Collection Online as of December 4, 2023
early 1900s
Wood, boar tusks, pelt, cloth, human hair, probably aluminum, reeds, iron alloy, copper alloy, plant fiber, and paint
Overall: 38.1 cm (15 in.)
Gift of Katherine C. White 1971.294
Description Tubular eyes and the fringe of carved leopard canine teeth identify this mask as male. Such masks appeared only during very important moments. The dancer wore a leopard skin over his head and shoulders, held an elephant's tusk in his hand, and had his face painted white. The masks function as peacemakers; they led soldiers into battle, and administered justice.
Provenance Harry Franklin, Los Angeles
Harry Franklin, Los Angeles; Katherine White Reswick
Citations
Fagg, William. African Tribal Images; the Katherine White Reswick Collection . [Cleveland]: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1968. Mentioned and reproduced: no. 60
“New Acquisitions.”
African Arts 5, no. 4 (Summer 1972): 77–78. Reproduced: P. 78
www.jstor.org
Cleveland Museum of Art, and Henry John Drewal. African Art: A Brief Guide to the Collection: the Cleveland Museum of A rt. [Cleveland]: The Museum, 1989. Mentioned and reproduced: P. 6, fig. 8
Petridis, Constantijn. South of the Sahara: Selected Works of African Art. [Cleveland]: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2003. Mentioned and reproduced: P. 58-59, no. 14
Exhibition history
CMA 1968: "African Tribal Images: The Katherine White Reswick Collection," cat. no. 60, repr.; also to University Museum, Philadelphia.
CMA 1973: "Year in Review 1972," CMA Bulletin LX (March, 1973), p. 107, no. 37
