ClassificationsAfrican Art
Elite Male Helmet Crest Mask
Place CreatedCameroon, Africa
CultureKom (?)
Date20th Century
MediumWood, pigment, kaolin
Credit LineEx coll. William S. Arnett
Dimensions16 3/16 x 12 3/8 x 12 in. (41.1 x 31.5 x 30.5 cm)
Object number1994.004.241
Label TextMasks from the Cameroon Grassfields were owned by either the men's regulatory society (Kwifoyn) that shared power with the king (Fon), or by lineage groups authorized by the Kwifoyn to perform. This mask wears the lobbed cap similiar to the kind worn by the kign (Fon) and his title holders therefore indicating the high social rank of the person represented by the mask. The actual cap is formed by covering wooden pegs with knitted cotton, forming two distinct clusters of knobs (see for example 2004.016.020 and 2004.016.021).Exhibition HistoryMCCM Permanent Collection Installation, Rotation 3, September 26, 1998 - Spring 2003
ProvenanceEx coll. William Arnett (1939-2020), Atlanta, Georgia.
Status
Not on viewCollections
- African Art
19th-20th Century
late 19th-late 20th Century
19th-20th Century
late 19th-early 20th Century
20th Century
late 19th Century
20th Century
late 19th-late 20th Century
