Máscara de baile - Fang - Guinea Ecuatorial

The first report derives from ethnographic research conducted in the 1940s in what is now Equatorial Guinea. Perhaps surprisingly given the mask’s etymology, this report’s two documented masks (now held in the Museo Etnológic in Barcelona) seem unequivocally to embody men with facial hair. The same is true for a handful of other well-known masks associated with the genre, including a famous mask acquired by the French Fauve painter Maurice de Vlaminck in late 1905 or early 1906 (and soon thereafter sold to André Derain, now in the Centre Pompidou in Paris). Ngontang, in other words, seems to have variously incarnated not only female but also male white.
The first report derives from ethnographic research conducted in the 1940s in what is now Equatorial Guinea. Perhaps surprisingly given the mask’s etymology, this report’s two documented masks (now held in the Museo Etnológic in Barcelona) seem unequivocally to embody men with facial hair. The same is true for a handful of other well-known masks associated with the genre, including a famous mask acquired by the French Fauve painter Maurice de Vlaminck in late 1905 or early 1906 (and soon thereafter sold to André Derain, now in the Centre Pompidou in Paris). Ngontang, in other words, seems to have variously incarnated not only female but also male white spirit entities.

The second report, based on ethnographic research conducted in Gabon’s northern Woleu-Ntem province, features a 1960 photograph of a ngontang masquerade that shows a four-faced, pointy-nosed ngontang with raffia ruff and skirt, dancing in the presence of five dancers and two musicians. The report notes that ngontang appeared at marriages, wakes, and other celebrations. It also includes a transcription of song lyrics accompanying the masquerade. These lyrics, although somewhat obscure, mention sickness and suffering as well as a character known as "the White." It also includes a transcription of song lyrics accompanying the masquerade. These lyrics, although somewhat obscure, mention sickness and suffering as well as a character known as "the White."

Provenance:

Old spanish collection
Argiles Collection, Barcelona