Mask,

late 19th–20th century

This mask with two birds at the brow was worn during dances at festivals held for the Urhobo water spirit, Ohworo. While tradition dictated that participants coat the eyes and mouth of the mask with kaolin, or white riverbank chalk, other pigments were added over the years by multiple generations of the family that owned the mask. The deep layers of pigment visible on the surface, especially across the forehead, attest to many years of use. The red pigment was derived from the camwood tree while the intense blue appears to be laundry bluing, a synthetic substitute for local indigo that was made in England and exported to the colonies beginning in the mid-nineteenth century. Because dancers grasped the chin projection to stabilize the heavy mask as they performed exaggerated movements, a shiny patina developed on the grip.