Three:
20th c.
Senufo Helmet Mask
Carved wood
32" x 10" x 17"
20th c.
Senufo Helmet Mask
Carved wood, paint
13 1/2" x 8" x 10"
20th c.
Dogon Antelope (Walu) Mask
Carved wood, paint
26" x 9" x 8 1/2"
Provenance
Allan Stone Collection, New York
The Senufo peoples consist of more than thirty subgroups with many local variations of language and custom, and occupy a large area that spans the national boundaries of Côte d'Ivoire, Mali, and Burkina Faso. Masks like the one here are worn by members of the all-male Senufo initiation association known as Poro. Masks worn by Poro initiates in similar ceremonies did not always look the same
thy defy any singular interpretation. Nevertheless, their striking, and at times menacing, presence on the heads of performers, who were also cloaked in full-body outfits, likely attracted attention at the ceremonies for deceased elders and other events where they appeared. These horned helmet masks have been associated with magical powers and healing and rituals connected with agriculture and initiations. Horizontal masks like this are generally composites of carved animal parts: jaws, teeth, ears and horns. Most frequently seen are the muzzle of the crocodile, the tusks of the warthog and the long horns of the antelope or buffalo, as well as smaller representations of chameleons, birds and snakes. These combinations, often of mythic significance, are intended to impress and terrify. The masks are so powerful that contact with their dancers is believed hazardous and, for women, possibly fatal.


References

Gagliardi, Susan Elizabeth. “Senufo Arts and Poro Initiation in Northern Côte d’Ivoire.” In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art (metmuseum.org) Côte d'Ivoire, Arts of Africa and the Americas, Collections, Art Institute of Chicago (artic.edu) Côte d'Ivoire/Burkina Faso/Mali, Collections, National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian (africa.si.edu)

Smaller Senufo helmet mask has had the tip of horn reattached. Condition reports are rendered as specialist opinion by the staff of the Auction House and/or independent consultants and not as statements of fact. We do not guarantee the content of written or verbal condition reports. The absence of a condition report does not imply that there are no condition issues with the lot. ?? ?Please call us at (609) 397-9374 or e-mail info@ragoarts.com with any questions about this lot at least 24 hours prior to auction.?