Ibibio people, Ikot Ekpene, Nigeria

10 inches, wood painted with colored enamel

The original owner is a minister who served in Africa as a missionary some fifty years ago and now is retired in Illinois. According to him, masks such as this were sometimes used by pre-teen dancers in Ibibio and the Anang land of Nigeria. It was obtained during the time frame of 1952-1955 in the region of Ikot Ekpene, Nigeria. The paint is worn in places, and there is a chip at the rim below the chin where a dowel stick ran through the chin and the head. The dowel was sawed off and painted over. The rear is slightly soiled on the edges where it would contact the face, so it could have been worn once.

$330