West Africa, Liberia or Sierra Leone, Mende people, ca. mid-20th century CE. A large and skillfully carved wooden Bundu mask with a lengthy collar of dark raffia. Used during ceremonies associated with the Sande female societies, masks like this example embody idealized female beauty traits and oftentimes represent a revered ancestor of the society. The fascinating vizard presents a skillfully carved visage with a large, projecting forehead above closed, almond-shaped eyes, a narrow nasal bridge leading to a broad nose with flared nostrils, a petite smile, and a pointed chin, all flanked by a pair of naturalistic ears and capped with a bulbous headdress with 3 curved horns. Size (with raffia): 9.3" W x 32.5" H (23.6 cm x 82.6 cm); 35.5" H (90.2 cm) on included custom stand; size (without raffia): 7.9" W x 18.4" H (20.1 cm x 46.7 cm); 35.5" H (90.2 cm) on included custom stand.

A pair of decorative bands adorns the area below the headdress, one featuring a repeated pattern of coffee bean-like motifs and the other comprised of tightly incised parallel striations organized in a zigzag design. The massive head is supported by a thick neck, showing several folds of flesh - one of which fit with slit-form eye holes for the wearer - while the wreath of dark raffia is strung to the ovoid opening at the base via a series of annular drill holes.

This type of mask is traditionally used by a female society within the Mende culture on important occasions: handing down justice, attending funeral ceremonies, and going through initiation rites. During those initiation rites, the women who are already initiated, the Sande, wear these masks when they greet the newly initiated as they return from three months' seclusion in the forest. In use, the masks are complemented by long costumes attached to cover the entire body so that the identifications of the women remain anonymous. Often these masks combine male elements with female elements to show that the women have attained the same amount of knowledge as men. Similar examples exist in the Vatican Museum and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Provenance: private New York, New York, USA collection

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#163749

Repairs to periphery and top of headdress with break lines visible. Stable fissure with restoration travelling up from base to top of headdress. Some fraying and shedding of raffia. Expected nicks, abrasions, and indentations throughout, commensurate with age. Otherwise, excellent with nice patina.