Mask - Punu (ou Bapounou) - Gabon (No Reserve Price)

In the large regions of the Ngounié and Nyanga valleys, south and south-central Gabon, funeral ceremonies were the occasion for the release of white masks called Okuyi, Mukuyi or Mukudji depending on the location.

Okuyi masks are light, soft wood masks, bleached with white clay (formerly mixed with bone powder) . They are the commemorative representation of dead ancestors, men or women. The fact that masks can be gendered explains the male/female pairs.

Perched on large wooden stilts, the dancer was covered in raffia loincloths or cotton fabrics. He performed breathtaking acrobatic figures throughout the village and around the huts.

The Okuyi mask could be seen by men, women and children alike, although the latter preferred to stay hidden most of the time! ! !