Elu Mask with Hinged Jaw
1 of 3
Object Label
One can witness a wide variety of masquerades addressing issues of social well-being, protection, and health, as well as personal and spiritual concerns, in the Ogoni communities of southeastern Nigeria in which Zina Saro-Wiwa works.
Elu masks, such as this one, are danced by young members of secret men’s societies that have social, religious, or governmental functions. The small masks are attached to cone-shaped caps of fiber and cloth that cover the heads of the dancers. They are usually danced at annual festivals or at funerals of members of the societies. As Saro-Wiwa notes, Elu is an older, and more delicate, form of Ogoni masquerade than the newer genre in which she has worked.
Caption
Ogoni. Elu Mask with Hinged Jaw, early 20th century. Wood, fiber, 7 7/8 x 5 7/8 x 4 3/4 in. (20 x 15 x 12 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Dr. and Mrs. Milton Gross, 71.126. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 71.126_bw.jpg)
Gallery
Not on view
Collection
Gallery
Not on view
Collection
Culture
Title
Elu Mask with Hinged Jaw
Date
early 20th century
Geography
Place made: Rivers State, Nigeria
Medium
Wood, fiber
Classification
Dimensions
7 7/8 x 5 7/8 x 4 3/4 in. (20 x 15 x 12 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of Dr. and Mrs. Milton Gross
Accession Number
71.126
Rights
Creative Commons-BY
You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this three-dimensional work in accordance with a Creative Commons license. Fair use, as understood under the United States Copyright Act, may also apply. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply). For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.
Have information?
Have information about an artwork? Contact us at