Mask
Dan Artist, Liberia or Ivory Coast
Details
Title
Mask
Artist/Maker
Dan Artist, Liberia or Ivory Coast
Date
Twentieth century
Medium
Wood
Dimensions
Contact the museum for more information
Credit
Fred and Rita Richman Collection
Accession #
2002.300
Location
Currently not on view
In Dan communities of Liberia and the Ivory Coast, masks are performed only by men. This mask may have performed as deangle (“joking or laughing masquerade”), the mask of the initiation school, whose friendly, attractive spirit brings joy. Through graceful movements, it personifies a nurturing female spirit who provides food for boys living away from home in initiation camps.