Face Mask
Artist
Dogon peoples
(Malian)
DateEarly- to mid-20th century
MediumWood | Pigment | Palm fiber | Rattan
DimensionsOverall: 39 x 24 in. (99.1 x 61 cm)
ClassificationsAfrican art
Credit LineGift of Walter P. Chrysler, Jr.
Object number71.2397
Terms
- Ceremonies
- Africa
- Mali
Collections
On View
On viewLabel TextFace Mask (Kanaga) Early- to mid-20th century Dogon peoples Mali Wood, pigment, rattan, and palm fiber Gift of Walter P. Chrysler, Jr. 71.2397 The kanaga mask is made by young initiates in the Awa society, which oversees funeral rituals. The rough-hewn form of the face and the rope joining the sections of the headpiece reveal that it was made by novices. As a part of their introduction to Awa traditions, young men would learn that the headpiece represents the legs and body of a crocodile, an animal who in Dogon myth brought the culture's ancestors to the region. An Awa elder would interpret the same piece differently. When the kanaga mask is used in a funereal dance, the masker moves his head to create the pattern of a helix, or spiral. The mask and dance combined with the perspective of age represent the cyclical nature of life, death, and regeneration observed throughout nature.
