Epa Helmet Mask

Place CreatedNigeria, Africa

CultureYoruba, Ekiti region, town of Efon-Alaiye

Dateearly 20th Century

MediumWood, pigment, encrustation

Credit LineGift of William S. Arnett

Dimensions41 x 14 15/16 x 12 1/2 in. (104.2 x 38 x 31.8 cm)

Object number1994.003.015

Label TextEpa headdress masks perform in biannual festivals held in Ekiti, Igbomina, and Ijesa communities of northern Yorubaland. During the Epa festival the history of a town is celebrated with the display of numerous masks. Each headdress is a memorial to the ancestors of the family that owns it. The lower, helmet-shaped portion of the mask depicts Eshu, the god who mediates between humans and other gods, while the superstructure depicts a particular individual, carved in a more naturalistic style. This Epa headdress makes dual reference to a farmer and a warrior/hunter, both essential characters in the founding and prosperity of a community. The equestrian figure conveys the warrior's military authority and its broad-brimmed hat is of a type worn by farmers as protection from the sun. Epa masks are also placed in familial shrines as objects of private devotion. The overall black encrustation of this headdress comes from repeated sacrifices and food offerings over many years.
Exhibition HistoryAfrican Artistry: Technique and Aesthetics in Yoruba Sculpture, The High Museum of Art, Atlanta, Georgia, April 17 - May 25, 1980
Art of Nigeria from the William S. Arnett Collection, Michael C. Carlos Museum, October 15, 1994 - January 2, 1995
MCCM Permanent Collection Installation, Rotation 2, February 1997 - July 1998
MCCM Permanent Collection Installation, July 19, 2003 - March 13, 2007
Published ReferencesHenry John Drewal, African Artistry: Technique and Aesthetics in Yoruba Sculpture (Atlanta: The High Museum of Art, 1980), 88, number 155.

ProvenanceEx coll. William S. Arnett, Atlanta (1939-2020), Atlanta, Georgia, from at least 1980.

Status

Not on view

Collections