Brooklyn Museum: Arts of Africa and the Pacific Islands: Lipiko Mask

18:55 11/21/2009

collected by Captain W.Read ; acquired from W.O.Oldman (documented 426-428 letter dated 01/13/1922)

posted by Michel LEVEAU

Want to add this object to a set? Please join the Posse, or log in.

Lipiko Mask

Lipiko masks are used at boys' and girls' initiation ceremonies to represent spirits (midimu). They are noteworthy for their realism, each mask depicting details of a particular facial type and hairstyle. Lipiko masks are often caricatures of members of neighboring groups, religious leaders, and colonial officials.

Culture: Makonde
Medium: Wood, hair, fiber, pigment
Place Made: Cabo Delgado Province, Mozambique
Dates: 19th century
Dimensions: 13 x 10 1/4 x 11 1/4 in. (33 x 26 x 28.6 cm)
Collections: Arts of Africa and the Pacific Islands
Museum Location: This item is on view in African Galleries, 1st Floor
Accession Number: 22.1588
Credit Line: Museum Expedition 1922, Robert B. Woodward Memorial Fund
Image: Front, 22.1588_front_acetate_bw.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph

Catalogue Description: Wooden mask, helmet type of heroic size. Soft wood colored a brick-red shade. Human hair (probably) fixed to the top head, beard attached to chin. Protruding lips, flattened nose, rounded forehead. Ears carved into fan-like shapes.

Collections: Arts of Africa and the Pacific Islands: Lipiko Mask