Amongst the Kwele people (also known as Bakwele), who live in the corner of the three lands, between Cameroon, Gabon and the Congo, the gorilla plays an important role. According to their foundation myths, a male gorilla is viewed as clan founder, mythical progenitor and ‘lord of the earth’. In the cult of the Kwele, the gorilla mask ‘Gon’ embodies the element of the original, wild and untamed nature. The present ‘Gon’ mask, carved out of light-coloured, lightweight wood, shows the skull of a gorilla in typical form: with a central crest on the crown of the head at the top, and a triangularly formed forehead, deep-set eyes, a wide, angular nose and a strongly projecting mouth with two strong canine teeth pointing downwards. The upper part of the mask, including the triangular forehead, was originally coloured in white by means of kaolin, as were also the two canine teeth below. The rest of the exterior of the gorilla skull is coloured black, the jaws at the front red. The rare ‘Gon’ mask shows in general a good, partly shiny usage patina (especially at the back, on the inside, and in the attachment holes on both sides), as well as some age-related damage: heavy colour scuffing, the nose was once broken and was repaired with black resin (old original repair), as well as breaks and chips at front and back, due to long use). H: c. 40 cm, W: c. 17 cm. First half of the 20th century. (ME)

Provenance: According to information from the consignor, purchased in 1973 ‘in situ’ in a village in the border region between Cameroon and Gabon. Since then: Austrian Private Collection.

Lit.: ‘Le souffle des Esprits. Art sacre du Bassin de L'Ogooue’ by Pierre Redouin, text and ill.: p. 216-217; ‘Die Kunst des schwarzen Afrika’ by Kerchache, Paudrat, Stephan, fig. 147, 577, 976.