A head of ‘Egungun’, the god of ancestors and hunting, as a crest to be tied on to a cap during processions, dances and rituals in honour of this god. Carved out of hard, light-coloured wood, with black-dyed hairstyle consisting of five transverse, linear relief crests and a long braid, pierced on its outside tip, on the left side of the head. ‘Egungun heads’ with such long plaits hanging to one side commemorate, in particular, important ancestors of the hunter clans and are called ‘Egungun Layewu’. The face area, with typical tribal decorative scarification marks on the forehead and both cheeks as well as on the neck, is dyed red. The typical, slightly protruding Yoruba eyes are white, with inserted pupils made of black glass beads. In the black-dyed ears hang earrings of leather and cotton fibres, with a red fabric tassel on the right ear. The round base plate is white and displays encircling holes for attaching the crest to a hat, with which this ‘Egungun head’ was worn on the head of a dancer with a coloured costume covering his entire body. A charming cult object with colour scuffing due to age to both the black-dyed part and the white base plate. Old, short cracks to the braid, behind the left ear and to the base. Otherwise no damage, but with good, old shiny patina above (even at the bottom), as a result of protracted use.
Height: 26 cm; width: 17 cm.
First half of the 20th century. (ME)

Provenance:
Austrian private collection.

Lit.:
‘Yoruba. Nine Centuries of African Art and Thought’ by H. J. Drewal, J. Pemberton III. & R. Abiodun, ill. p. 212; ‘Yoruba’ by Babatunde Lawal, ill. 58; ‘Yoruba. Scupture of West Africa’ by William Fagg & John Pemberton III., ill. 26; ‘African Artistry’ by H. J. Drewal, ill. 135.