Click on a name to see a larger image.
|
This mask has been vetted as being authentic, with significant signs of use and age (19th C.)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Photographs © Tim Hamill
WE, WOBE MASKS, Liberia
Living in along the western edge of the Ivory Coast, the Wobe and their neighbors the Guere share numerous customs and beliefs. Although they are separate tribes, the two peoples are often referred to as the We, whose name means "men who easily forgive."
We carvers seem to have focused their skills on carving powerful face masks to which paraphernalia such as cowrie shells, bells, nails and feathers were attached. These applied pieces were thought to reinforce the power of the mask. Wobe masks have protruding globular eyes and enlarged lips. The horns found on Guere masks are usually absent from Wobe ones.
-----From The Tribal Arts of Africa by Jean-Baptiste Bacquart.
RETURN TO MASKS OF THE DAN EXHIBITION PAGE
GO TO DAN MASKS AND HEADDRESSES PAGE
Index by |
Index by |
