Southern Bayaka - DR Congo

The mask belongs to the southern Bayaka and was made by a Tundansi (a young man undergoing initiation).
This mask has very attractive colours due to its white dotted stripes
framing red lines on a black background. Each element of a mask is the translation of a
cosmological concept: the colours are those used in rites of passage and the crown of raffia fibres
that border the mask, the palm-leaf fences that conceal the ritual enclosure and play
a protective role with symbolism linked to the fertile palm tree.

Provenance: Berthe Hartert Collection
Argiles Collection, Barcelona