Hyena Helmet Mask
Wood, Pigment ca. 20th century
H. 27 x W. 9 x D. 6 in.
This spirit animal mask was carved by the Dogon Peoples of Mali, West Africa. The Dogon are indigenous to the central plateau region of Mali, south of the Niger River, near the cliffs of Bandiagara. This mask is used for Dama rituals, an important commemorative ceremony in Dogon culture. Hundreds of masked elders perform a large-scale spectacle in honor of a passed elder using animal, human, and abstract-form masks. Each mask represents different facets of the life around them and replicates the lives of the ancestors. The ceremony seeks to restore order in the universe after death’s disruption.
Citation:
African Art Dogon Myths Dwellers
