Imposing Bwiti Dance Mask - medium density wood of the Ricinodendron family of trees - Vuvi - Gabon

Imposing Bwiti Dance Mask – Vuvi – Gabon In fine state, but with much wear and tear. Bone dry interior. It dates back to the 1930´s. On stand. Provenance: Ex-collection of Dr. Helmuth Zimmermann, greater Düsseldorf area, Germany. Obtained by him on one of his many hunting trips to Gabon between 1955 and 1960. Acquired from his son by P. Westerdijk in 2017. In fine state, as said above, but clearly heavily used to go by the state of the top, sides and interior. That is the first impression one gets of the piece. The second trait is the occurrence of small sticks hammered into the top and chin to facilitate attachment of a costume consisting of grassstems and reeds strung on cords to hide the dancer. The face part is covered with a thick layer of chalk or clay. The eyebrows are double arched, a sure Vuvi- Tshogo feature. The small triangular nose and narrow mouth are also part of the picture presented by Vuvi-Tshogo masks. Some faint traces of a red pigment in the rim framing the forehead. An old and authentic Bwiti dance implement. Literature: Jean-Baptiste Bacquart, The Tribal Arts of Africa, New York, 1998, fig 6 on p. 116 Dimensions: 38x 23 x 15 cm. People / Region: The Vuvi- Tshogo live in the southcentral area of Gabon Material: medium density wood of the Ricinodendron family of trees. Weight: 0. 652 kg. Sold with handwritten declaration of authenticity by Dr. P. Westerdijk, museum ethnologist and cultural anthropologist specialized, for over 50 years now, in the study of the material cultures in African nations that live south of the Sahara.