Gelede masks pertain to a society within
Yoruba culture that concerns itself with
appeasing the potentially harmful spirits of
women. Women, especially when elderly,
are held to be a spiritual asset to Yoruba
society, but they can become “aje” – that is,
summoning up destruction and ill fortune
upon the group that displeases them. To
appease them, therefore, the gelede society
puts on shows in which certain themes are
addressed by gelede dancers wearing
recognisable headdresses. Usually they are
accompanied by full-length costumes that
conceal the identity of the wearer. The
worthy are praised, the unworthy satirised
and the cosmic forces affecting the
community evoked and explored. Each
localised group has stylistic deviations from
the norm that are essentially unique in
combination. Muslim areas are likely to
produce masks with beards and strongly
masculine features, while local myths are
also likely to find expression in gelede
artefacts. The current example presents a
host of stylistic conventions, and is further
complicated by the addition of extra
detailing. The figure is male, and has the
pointed beard often associated with Muslims
in Yoruban culture. The face is small and
wizened, with two irregular teeth perhaps
denoting a person of advanced years. The
eyes are cunning and hooded, exaggerated
by carving of a deep groove where they join
the forehead. The superstructure comprises
large ears surmounted by a pair of very large
and ornate curved horns (or perhaps ears)
that sweep back from the face and double
the height of the mask. The whole is
decorated with incised decoration, and is
doubly dramatic for the dark colouring and
the detailing that is picked out in creamy-
white. The cheeks are adorned with double
grooves, denoting scars, which have been
painted white. The drama of the piece has
been highlighted with the addition of dark
feathers and a seed pod that haven been
attached along the apex of the mask and on
the forehead. There are no holes in the rim
that would have been set upon the wearer’s
head, so any costume would have had to be
attached in some other way. It is possible
that this mask was designed to represent
animals, sylvan spirits or some other natural
force, as these elements are invariably
included in gelede masquerades.
- (LSO.239)
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