Helmet mask
Kuba (Bushongo); Democratic Republic of Congo; Katanga, Kasai region
Purchased from Harry A. Franklin Gallery, 1966
5-6238
One of twenty varieties of Kuba masks, this is from a set of three royal masks. Although they belong to the king, he chooses someone to wear them for him. They are worn with a costume of barkcloth and raffia cloth. This type represents Ngady a mwash, the sister-and wife-of Woot, a legendary ancestor who founded the dynasty of Kuba kings. Ngady a mwash is the female ancestor and embodiment of womanhood. In the royal drama, she is prostituted by Woot to attract followers. The lines below her eyes refer to the hardships of women by symbolizing tears. The black and white triangles represent the black stones of the hearth and domesticity.
(Photograph 1 of 4)
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