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