Ngontang multi-faced mask (No reserve price)

African tribal art: Fang people, Gabon: Ngontang mask with four elongated faces. Early 20th century. In carved wood, it presents a hollowed form reminiscent of a helmet, adorned with four stylized faces arranged around its circumference. The surface is covered with a dark patina, punctuated by lighter areas coated with kaolin and triangular decorations. The eyes are outlined by fine incisions, the lips protruding by horizontal grooves and the forehead by scarifications. The crest of the mask is adorned with a bouquet of feathers. The lower edge is pierced with holes to allow the attachment of elements of headdress or costume.

The white faces of the Ngontang masks symbolize young women returning from the kingdom of the dead, beyond the seas. Among the Fang, white is the color of death and ancestral spirits.

Masks with multiple faces suggest the ability to perceive both the world of the living and that of the dead.