Bwaka mask - Bwaka - DR Congo (No reserve price)

Ngbaka (also called Bwaka), Democratic Republic of Congo: a very old mask, with typical scars on the forehead and the nose.

The Ngbaka live in the northwest of Congo, along the Ubangi River. Their masks appear in initiation rituals. This Ngbaka mask is carved from lightweight, light-colored wood. The face portion is black-painted, or more precisely, it was originally coated with a black, glossy layer. Because of the mask’s exceptional age, parts of this black layer have already flaked away. The oval mask head is slightly concave and bends inward at the lower part of the face. Only the large, open mouth, with four teeth carved from the same piece of wood, protrudes. The vertical lines of the typical tribal decorative scarifications, short, transverse and accentuated in a lighter color, run from the top of the head over the forehead and along the nose. This type of scarification tattoos was traditionally worn by Ngbaka men in daily life. Small, round eyes sit close to the short, thick nose. The glossy, partially covered patina on the partly flaked black layer is remarkable on this mask. This patina indicates an exceptionally old age of this object. Also on the back, inside, this Ngbaka mask shows an old patina on the right, glossy spots, as well as clear signs of use at the holes for attaching the mask costume. At the back edge, at the very top, there is an old, original repair with black tree resin and a nail. Aside from the already mentioned color fading and dents at the edges from aging, there is no notable damage. An unusually old mask that stands out for its pure expressiveness.