Skin-covered Headdress with Raffia Beard

Headdresses covered with leather are found only in the Cross River area of Cameroon. Some are fiercely stylized while others are startlingly realistic and may in fact have been portraits of individuals.

The artist carves the form from a single piece of wood and then covers it with untanned antelope skin that has been soaked for several days, scraped, and smoothed. He stitches, pegs, and ties the skin into place and allows it to dry. Eyes, ears, scarification patterns, and hair are carved and covered separately, then pegged onto the finished piece. Finally, the piece is painted prior to performance.