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HOME :
African & Tribal Art :
African Masks : Sapo Wooden Mask
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Sapo Wooden Mask - PF.3905
Origin: Liberia
Circa: 20
th
Century AD
Dimensions:
21" (53.3cm) high
x 11" (27.9cm) wide
Collection: African
Style: Sapo
Medium: Wood
$9,000.00
Location: United States
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| Description |
The idea that animals represent spirits of
deceased ancestors, or of bush spirits, is widely
believed in Africa. This constitutes the basis of
totemic cults. The artists who work for these
cults often depict ancestral spirits in fantastic
and often very imaginative masks. The Sapo
sculptors delighted in creating animal-like
masks that also have distinctly anthropomorphic
qualities. This remarkable mask is breathtaking
when first seen. Our sensibilities are shocked
because we are suddenly confronted with an
object that has few, if any, parallels in Western
art. Firstly, there is more than one animal
depicted. The horns are those of a gazelle or
antelope, as are the long ears; yet the mouth is
greatly elongated like a bird's. The eyes,
however, are profoundly human and though
barely etched in, are beautifully expressive,
showing compassion and gentleness. The entire
object is constructed with refined balance and
symmetry, highly sophisticated in its graceful
form. It would probably have been used in an
initiation ceremony where young boys would
stare awestruck at the wonder of this work of art;
as they look towards the future of a new life as
young men.
- (PF.3905)
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