Bozo - Mali (No reserve price)

This lot consists of two related masks, sold together. The structured fields above (dimensions, material) describe the larger mask. Details for both pieces:

Large mask: 600mm (H) x 200mm (W), carved wood body with brass/copper sheet cladding fixed by rivets, a carved wood eye set into an elongated zoomorphic snout, two thin curved wire elements at the tip, a concave carved wood helmet section at the back designed to sit over the wearer's head, small drilled attachment holes along the wood edges, and raffia fibre tufts in several places.

Small mask: 400mm (H) x 170mm (W), stylistically related, with a more angular, diamond-shaped brass/copper-clad face and raffia tufts on both sides.

Both masks were personally acquired in Mali in 2000, during an educational technology project through the University of Pennsylvania based in Bamako, with travel to Dogon Country during the same trip. A short documentary was filmed at the time. They have remained together in the same private collection continuously since, approximately 25 years, with no intermediate owners.

Condition: both pieces are stable. The large mask has a few age-related cracks in the wood, including near the carved helmet cavity, and an old wood repair patch inset into the metal near the snout tip. The metal cladding on both shows natural oxidation. A hanging cord visible in photos of the large mask was added by the current owner some years after acquisition; it originally had none.

These are offered as well-made decorative pieces of Malian craftsmanship with strong, documented personal provenance, rather than as objects with confirmed ceremonial use history.

Large mask: 600mm (H) x 200mm (W), weight 2.45 kg
Small mask: 400mm (H) x 170mm (W), weight approx. 1 kg