| For additional detail, click on any photo below to see the higher resolution version of the image. |
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| For additional detail, click on any photo below to see the higher resolution version of the image. |
Bozo Kiwarani mask, Mali
35" tall x 10" wide (mask and horns measurement)
wood, metal, shells, mirrors, beads, pigment
The mask includes a very nice custom mount.
$1300
This is a very large mask and also a very uncommon mask. I bought this mask from an African dealer back in 2002
who is originally from Mali, and one from whom I've purchased a lot of my Bamana and Bozo puppets from over
the years. I'd never seen one of these on the market and I was immediately drawn to it and had to have it. I sold it
to a collector in Florida 5 or 6 years ago and recently bought it back from him.
I've never seen one of these in person, I've only seen them in a couple of books. I don't have any history on this
particular mask, but it doesn't appear that it has had any real use. It could have been made and performed for
tourists, or made specifically for the collecting market, but in any case it's a fantastic mask and really makes a
statement when you see it in a room.
Below the photos of this mask I've placed a photo of a similar example and information on it for reference purposes.
35" tall x 10" wide (mask and horns measurement)
wood, metal, shells, mirrors, beads, pigment
The mask includes a very nice custom mount.
$1300
This is a very large mask and also a very uncommon mask. I bought this mask from an African dealer back in 2002
who is originally from Mali, and one from whom I've purchased a lot of my Bamana and Bozo puppets from over
the years. I'd never seen one of these on the market and I was immediately drawn to it and had to have it. I sold it
to a collector in Florida 5 or 6 years ago and recently bought it back from him.
I've never seen one of these in person, I've only seen them in a couple of books. I don't have any history on this
particular mask, but it doesn't appear that it has had any real use. It could have been made and performed for
tourists, or made specifically for the collecting market, but in any case it's a fantastic mask and really makes a
statement when you see it in a room.
Below the photos of this mask I've placed a photo of a similar example and information on it for reference purposes.
| INFORMATION AND EXAMPLE BELOW FOR REFERENCE PURPOSES |
| MASK (KIWARANI) Mali, Bozo, Kita region Wood, shells, mirror, seeds, beads H. 73 cm. (28 inches) Dakar-Djibouti expedition 1931-1933 The mask in the photo above is in the Musee de I'Homme In the journal of the Dakar-Djibouti expedition, published in 1934 under the title I'Afrique Fantome, Michel Leiris stated that this mask and two others were bought at a dance organized by the colonial administration for the celebration of Bastille Day on July 14, 1931. "Men wearing antelope masks having five horns and six mirrored eyes danced with others who were entirely costumed and whose hoods had a long tuft of porcupine quills in place of a nose." Leiris was told that this type of mask was invented by a blacksmith (noumou) named Tamba who lived in the village of Kolena. According to a tradition relating to the Emperor Soundyata Keyta, this mask would first have been carved in the image of a woman, who then changed herself into an antelope, and then into a porcupine. Elsewhere, Leiris was told that these Malinke masks, like Bamana antelope crests, were linked to agricultural rites and were worn to encourage farmers in their work. To our knowledge, the Musee de I'Homme is the only museum that owns masks such as these from the eastern border of Mali, a region from which very few sculptures are known. This scarcity is explained by the almost total Islamization of the region at the end of the nineteenth century. The users of these masks never mentioned their functions to the expedition members, except for a vague entertainment purpose. If the masking societies still existed in 1931, their activity was kept secret. The sophistication and richness of the colored decoration leads one to think that the blacksmith-sculptor who made them worked for a society that was still very active and which took care to call upon a renowned sculptor. In spite of Leiris' efforts, he never succeeded in meeting Tamba. Source: Masterpieces from the Musee de l'Homme |