Crest Mask (Ngambak)
Koro
1900–1950
- Medium
- Wood, pigment, resin, abrus seeds, and fiber
- Dimensions
- 87 × 31.1 × 20.3 cm (34 1/2 × 12 1/4 × 8 in.)
- Genre
- masks
- Museum
- Art Institute of Chicago
Styles
Tags
agriculturekoro acheritualfiberpainting (image making)geometricappliqué (technique)guardianmasksperformanceheaddress - miscwood (plant material)abstract figuresafrican Artarts of AfricaCoastal West Africacarvingresinincisingseedspigmentkoro
About
Constructed in three parts connected by pegs, this human-shaped headdress, richly decorated with geometric patterns in paint and pokerwork, is called ngambak (man with bowed legs). Serving as village guardians, headdresses of this kind were worn with tentlike fabric robes during agrarian dance festivals that marked the planting and harvesting seasons. They were typically destroyed or discarded after being used in performance.