Mask (gela)

Bassa people, Liberia, African

20th century

  • Titles Mask (gela) (Descriptive)
  • Medium wood, pigment, textile, metal
  • Dimensions Overall: 5 x 10 in. (12.7 x 25.4 cm) Overall1: 3 in. (7.6 cm)
  • Credit Line Gift of Merrily C. Baird, 1986.737
  • Work Type mask
  • Classification Costume

See More of the Collection

Face mask with rabbit features. Narrow vertical oval ears painted red with white interiors; protruding conical black eyes surrounded by concentric black rings with white pigment in-between; protruding open triangular mouth/snout, painted black, adorned with small incised triangles painted white and red. Oval perimeter of back of mask pierced with multiple holes to enable attachment of mask to dancer's head as well as attachment of fiber costume. This type of mask is worn by men during funeral or initiation ceremonies. Animal masks commemorate encounters that people have had with ancestors who appeared in the form of an animal.
Limestone slab with relief carving representing a doorway, covered with hieroglyphic inscriptions and the image of a man identified as General Fefi seated before a table.
Drum, Babanki people, Republic of Cameroon, African, wood, hide, nails, cord
Carved wooden mask with mud packed fiber wig and woven neck piece. Mask used in initiation ritual.