Holo - DR Congo

This Holo mask is an extraordinary simplification of a buffalo’s head. Buffaloes are believed
to possess supernatural powers due to their ability to vanish and reappear at will. In
hunting tales, it is said that the animal returns to the spot where it was wounded, but takes a
detour; it then hides and surprises the hunter from behind. In this respect, the buffalo resembles the sorcerer.
According to J. Cornet, ‘among the Holo masks are the most eminent masterpieces of the
genre, particularly a type of mask also found among the Yaka: those depicting the heads
of animals, particularly buffalo and antelope’. These masks are used, essentially, for
the dances that follow circumcision, in the Kwango-Kwilu region. Holo art is little
known, having been discovered relatively recently, yet it is of a high quality.

Provenance: Medicus Mundi missionaires
Argiles Collection, Barcelona