photo: Austin Kennedy
On view
African Art
Gugwang mask,
19th–20th century
Artist unrecorded
Sura
2015-5
This mask was worn flat on top of the head with the long, pointed beak extending forward, transforming its wearer into a bird. Carved from dense wood, the heavy mask needed to be steadied by a masquerader during his performance, leaving behind sweat and body oils that produced the worn yet shiny surface under the front of the beak and on the grip behind the mask. Careful examination reveals small holes where seeds may once have been impressed into the black coal tar.
Information
Title
Gugwang mask
Dates
19th–20th century
Maker
Medium
Wood, paint, and coal tar
Dimensions
67 × 22.9 × 19 cm (26 3/8 × 9 × 7 1/2 in.)
Credit Line
Museum acquisition from the Holly and David Ross Collection, with the support of the Fowler McCormick Fund
Object Number
2015-5
Place Made
Africa, Nigeria, Benue River Valley
Techniques
Subject
British colonial agent, Nigeria. [Antonio Casanovas, Arte y Ritual Gallery, Madrid, Spain by 2005]; purchased via Kaos Parcours des Mondes by Holly and David Ross, Princeton, NJ, 2005; purchased by the Princeton University Art Museum, Princeton, NJ, 2015.
