Dan Bassa mask from Liberia; measures approximately 14" tall; please refer to photographs for condition. Dan masks are worn with full costumes covering the body. The masks have different functions. The "deangle" mask, for example, has a shallow, domed forehead with median ridge, slit eyes with a kaolin, painted horizontal strip, and a cowrie shell fiber cap. It becomes the guardian and intermediary of the uncircumcised boy's initiation camp. Carved figures known as "lu me" (wooden people) are rare, and are usually female. They are portraits of the preferred wife of the chief, and confer prestige to their owners. Early male figures are especially rare.