Description: wood, colour pigments, metal, basketry, crack (neck), hair lugs partly separately carved and fastened, originally covered with hide, base These crests depict ancestral female spirits who performed in war dances, as a counterpart to male masks that were originally supposed to be made of real human skulls. The crest shows the typical hairstyle that was achieved with the help of a special paste and is reminiscent of a type of seated female figures, as used by the Idoma in fertility rites for the water spirit "Anjenu". Continent: Africa
Dimensions: H: 38,5 cm, H: 15,2 inch
Condition Report: See description
Literature: Lebas, Alain (ed.), Arts of Nigeria in French Private Collections, Milan 2012, ill. 130
Provenance: Michel Gaud, Saint Tropez, France