This type of mask, ‘Mwana pwo’, depicts a ‘beautiful girl’ – coming from the afterlife on benevolent/beneficial visitation of the living. The mask is ‘danced’ on stilts by men in tightly plaited costumes. The present ‘Mwana pwo’-mask represents the ‘classical’ beauty ideal of the Chokwe people: It is carved from very hard, light-coloured wood. The band on the forehead has rhomboid patterns. The arched eyebrows and mouth, with its fine demarcation, were originally dyed dark brown. On the mask’s forehead can be found the tribal mark of the Chokwe people, the 'Cingelyengelye' (a Maltese cross of a kind), carved in arched Relief. Under the fine, slit, almond-shaped protruding eyes, run sideways and out, in relief, the traditional scarification marks called ‘tears’. A cast metal ring made of brass wire hangs from the mask’s right ear. The left ear is broken. The hairstyle is a tight wickerwork of brown plant fibres, to which have been attached long plaits of coloured and twisted cotton fibres along with textile remnants. Attached to the outer rim of the mask via holes, a fine mesh made of brown plant fibres, serves to cover the neck of the masked dancer. A very fine and nicely crafted piece, with a minimum of broken piece and tears under the chin. This mask has been ‘danced in’ (see the shiny patina on the inside). However, it is not a very old object. Height: 23 cm (the mask alone); first half to mid-20th century. (ME)

Provenance:
Pursuant to information supplied by the consigner, purchased by the Belgian Ricard Dames around 1970 (during the so-called ‘Angola Crisis’) in Congo, then: Dutch Private Collection; currently: Austrian Private Collection.

Lit.:
'La Sculpture Tshokwe' by Marie-Louise Bastin, ill. 41, 45, 46; 'Chokwe!' by Manuel Jordan, ill. 56, 58; 'Escultura Angolana' by Marie-Louise Bastin, ill. 162.