Baule Mask

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This Baule mask is one the objects in my collection of African artifacts. The 

Baule people of the Ivory Coast have long been recognised in Europe and The 

United States as one of Africa's most significant art traditions. The work of 

many modern artists - Amedeo Modigliani in particular - reflects the direct 

influence of Baule invention and forms.

I've juxtaposed my photos with images of some Baule people in the book 

'Baule African Art Western Eyes' by Susan Mullin Vogel.

The last image is of a similar mask from a people close to the Baule, Ivory 

Coast's Yaure. It is from the book 'African Masks from the Barbier-Mueller 

Collection':

This mask type with a depiction of a hornbill (Bucorvus abyssinicus), or perhaps a species of woodpecker, is called lomane. The word derives from anoman, which means "bird" in the Baule language and occurs in the songs which accompany the maskers' performance. In most Yaure villages, the lomane belongs to the Je group of masks. Yet examples exist which, adorned with two bird figures, are considered part of the Lo ensemble, which appears after the Je at funerals of elderly men. The fourth of a total of seven Je masqueraders, the lomane dances around the body of the deceased., then bends over and touches it. Based on the statements of several Yaure, who say the mask kills the worms that decompose the body, this act could be interpreted as symbolic purification.

Photo: Susan M. Vogel
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Photo: Susan M. Vogel

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Photo: Susan M. Vogel

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Photo: Susan M. Vogel

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Photo: Susan M. Vogel

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Photo: Susan M. Vogel

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Photo: Susan M. Vogel

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Photo: Susan M. Vogel

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Face mask of the Je group (Lomane)

Yaure, Ivory Coast

Wood with accents in white and read

Height 43 cm (16 7/8 in.)

Barbier-Mueller Collection

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