Helmet Mask

Item number K2.432 from the MOA: University of British Columbia.

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Description

Hollow, brown wood piece of a small female face with a complicated coiffure. The eyes are thin and crescent-shaped. Has a triangular nose and a small, compressed mouth. Four vertical marks are on each cheek. The ears are crescent-shaped. Around the sides of the head, the coiffure has five sets of thin triangular features with diagonal grooves at either back side surrounded by a larger feature with curvi-linear grooves. Along the front and the back, there is a separate band with a diamond-shaped pattern. There is a knob at the top of the head. Around the lower portion of the head, there are six rounded, horizontal bands which go all the way around. A horizontal series of holes is around the lower band.

History Of Use

The sowei, or bundu, mask is made by men but worn as a dance mask by women in the Sande women's society, during girls' initiation camps. There they are prepared for marriage, trained in both domestic and economic pursuits and in singing and dancing. The masked dancers visit the camps to remind the girls of the ideals of female beauty and virtue. When the girls leave, they are considered to be women ready for marriage. During a dance, the mask is worn by a "ndoli jowei" performer, with a full costume concealing the dancer's identity.