Bambara face mask, Mali - Lot 41

Bambara face mask, Mali A narrow forehead under which the slits of the eyes are housed, a busted nose highlighted by two scarified ribs and a reduced mouth almost evoking a bird's beak. This unconventional mask nevertheless follows the general conventions of Bambara sculpture, with the emphasis on the nasal organ. Dark, grainy, ochre-encrusted patina. Missing posterior contour. 23 x 14 cm The Bambara of central and southern Mali belong to the large Mande group, like the Soninke and Malinke. They believe in the existence of a creator god, generically called Ngala, who maintains the order of the universe. His existence coexists with another androgynous god called Faro. Six male associations, the Dyow, using Bambara masks, structure the Bambara community: young people first enter the n'tomo circumcision society, then the komo society, the nama, the kono, the koré and finally the Tyi Wara agrarian society. Large masked festivals bring to a close the initiation rites of the dyo association and the gwan ritual of the Bambara in southern Bambara country. Spread over a period of seven years for men, they are less demanding for women. The new initiates then celebrate their symbolic rebirth in groups, from village to village.