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Senufo - Elfenbeinküste (Ohne Mindestpreis)
Nr. 84665289
Nr. 84665289
A Senufo Kpelié wooden mask, Ivory Coast, the oval, hollowed form with a central face, rectangular mouth showing teeth, pointed thin nose, coffee bean eyes with a horizontal slit at its center, a protruding forehead, five chameleons are standing on the mask, a larger one at the center and four smaller ones on the sides, the mask is attached to its headdress which makes it quite a unique piece, the rims of the mask have cowrie shells all around, and long strands of rope attache to them, making the mask vibrant and alive, the back of the mask is covered by a piece of brown fabric to hide the head of the ones wearing it, scarifications all through out the face; shiny patina, sign of use, incl. stand and certificate of origin and provenance.
"Kpelie-masks were worn during funeral sessions By the Poro society. These funeral festivities are marked by masquerades, which symbolically expresses the fundamental dualities in Senufo Thought: mal/female, body, spitit, life/death. In general this type of mask is symbolizing an ideal woman. The unique features which characterize the Kpelie mask include elongated flanges radiating from the bottom part of the mask, which are a reference to the hornbill bird. The horns on the mask refer to the ram, an important sacrificial animal. The nodules on the forehead represent palm nuts as well as vulvas; they are flanked by cicatrization marks that symbolize the twins born to the primordial couple.The significance of the double face are not known, but double- and single- faced Kpelie are used interchangably. "
Holas, B., L´Art Sacré Sénoufo, Limoges, 1978, Facing the Mask, Herreman, Frank, Museum for African Art. s. publ. , Till Foerster, Divination bei den Kafibele-Senufo, Dietrich Reimer Verlag, Berlin.
There are some beautiful documented pictures by Karl-Heinz Krieg, Region of Boundiali, Côte d'Ivoire.
Photography by Karl-Heinz Krieg (1970's) (last photo sequence).
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