Mask

c. 1920s
Overall: 49.5 cm (19 1/2 in.)
This artwork is known to be under copyright.
Location: not on view

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Joints on this mask's jaw allow it to open and close.

Description

Ibibio viewers understood that this Ekpo mask with a serene face depicts a beautiful, beneficent soul. This one probably honored a young Ibibio maiden who graduated from the "fattening house," an initiation school where she was fed rich foods to strengthen and beautify her. The bead suspended around the neck of the surmounting head is an insignia of graduation. The double-braided coiffure may have been inspired by Victorian fashions observed by the sculptor in magazines or worn by English missionary women.
Mask

Mask

c. 1920s

Africa, West Africa, Nigeria, Ibibio-style maker

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