AFRICAN TRIBAL HEMBA MISI GWA SO ' O SOKO MASK COSTUME DRC CONGO EXHIBITED IN 2012
Item History & Price
| Reference Number: Avaluer:6807239 | Tribe: Hemba |
| Original/Reproduction: Original |
A Fine Hemba Misi Gwa So'o Costume - Democratic Republic of Congo
ca. 1970-1980's
Wood, animal hair, vegetal fibers, patina
Height: 99cm (39in)
PROVENANCE: Ilunga Wa Ilunga Collection, Kampala, Uganda
EXHIBITED:
University of Central Missouri, McClure Archives Museum, Masquerade: Selected Works from Western and Central Africa, January-February, 2012, Cat No. 10.19.1
*Documentation on file and can accompany the artwork for historical conservation purposes
...
Description: Misi gwa so’o mask of abstract simian form, broad open mouth, tapering nose, arched eyebrows, closed eyes with crescent-shaped lids, all below a colobus hide headdress, the tunic composed of dark brown barkcloth, encircled with horizontal fiber braids.
Provenance: Ilunga Wa Ilunga Collection, Kampala, Uganda; field collected in the Katanga Region. Curatorial Remarks: Frayed tunic. Surface wear commensurate with use.
During the 18th century, the Hemba people, led by their chief Niembo, migrated from the south-west and settled on the right bank of the Lualaba River, in a region of fertile savannah. Today, they number 80, 000 and are divided into large clans which, by definition, are families with a common ancestor (Baquart, 2000). During funeral ceremonies, this sensational Hemba mask would represent the wandering souls of the departed. Neither human nor animalistic, the So’o is characterized by an intimidating grin enclosed by an elaborate headdress made from the hide of the colobus monkey. The mask is used by a semi-secret society to express ideas of death and social disorder.
Cf. Thomas D. Blakely and Pamela A. R. Blakely, So’o Masks and Hemba Funerary Festival, UCLA African Studies Center, 1987 and Sotheby’s, Malcolm Volume One: New York, Sale N09506, New York, May 7, 2016, Lot 6 (SOLD $30, 000) for comparable examples.
*WE WILL SHIP WORLDWIDE*
If you are outside the USA, please contact us for a more accurate shipping quote BEFORE BIDDING. Thank you.
00031
ca. 1970-1980's
Wood, animal hair, vegetal fibers, patina
Height: 99cm (39in)
PROVENANCE: Ilunga Wa Ilunga Collection, Kampala, Uganda
EXHIBITED:
University of Central Missouri, McClure Archives Museum, Masquerade: Selected Works from Western and Central Africa, January-February, 2012, Cat No. 10.19.1
*Documentation on file and can accompany the artwork for historical conservation purposes
...
Description: Misi gwa so’o mask of abstract simian form, broad open mouth, tapering nose, arched eyebrows, closed eyes with crescent-shaped lids, all below a colobus hide headdress, the tunic composed of dark brown barkcloth, encircled with horizontal fiber braids.
Provenance: Ilunga Wa Ilunga Collection, Kampala, Uganda; field collected in the Katanga Region. Curatorial Remarks: Frayed tunic. Surface wear commensurate with use.
During the 18th century, the Hemba people, led by their chief Niembo, migrated from the south-west and settled on the right bank of the Lualaba River, in a region of fertile savannah. Today, they number 80, 000 and are divided into large clans which, by definition, are families with a common ancestor (Baquart, 2000). During funeral ceremonies, this sensational Hemba mask would represent the wandering souls of the departed. Neither human nor animalistic, the So’o is characterized by an intimidating grin enclosed by an elaborate headdress made from the hide of the colobus monkey. The mask is used by a semi-secret society to express ideas of death and social disorder.
Cf. Thomas D. Blakely and Pamela A. R. Blakely, So’o Masks and Hemba Funerary Festival, UCLA African Studies Center, 1987 and Sotheby’s, Malcolm Volume One: New York, Sale N09506, New York, May 7, 2016, Lot 6 (SOLD $30, 000) for comparable examples.
*WE WILL SHIP WORLDWIDE*
If you are outside the USA, please contact us for a more accurate shipping quote BEFORE BIDDING. Thank you.
00031
