Mask "mwana pwo" - Chokwe - Angola

Mask “mwana pwo” Chokwe – Angola
Height: 24 cm
Years 1930
Hard wood, tukula, kaolin
Provenance: Paulo Akam (Portugal); Isi Janssens (Belgium)

Very beautiful pwo mask displaying the classic traits of Chokwe female sculptures: almond-shaped eyes, a fine nose adorned with ladder-like scarifications, teeth pointed and highlighted with kaolin.
The red patina comes from the traditional blend of tukula and palm oil, a symbol of vitality and fertility.

Facial scarifications and masoji tears refer to mukanda, the initiation of young boys. The pwo mask appears during Makishi festivities, inscribed on UNESCO’s intangible cultural heritage list, where it embodies the feminine ancestor, founder of the lineage, and transmits the values of beauty, dignity, and restraint.

Sculpted in the 1930s by a renowned Songo artist, this example stands out for the finesse of its execution. It belongs to the so‑called “colonial” production, made for the market of the time rather than for the dance.

I own another pwo mask by the same sculptor, from the same provenance and showing an evident stylistic kinship with the reference mask (see photos 11 and 12). It is, of course, while looking at these photos that one appreciates the Songo origin of the sculptor.

Careful, insured shipment, with tracking number.