Dealer image

Dealer image

photo: Austin Kennedy

Currently not on view

Mask (kam or akam),

before 1979

Cameroon Grassfields (probably Kom) artist
2015-6
The open mouth, rounded cheeks, and almond shaped eyes of this wooden headdress are typical of northern Grassfields sculpture. The beard and hairstyle made of actual hair enhance its realism. The same headdress could have different meanings and uses across kingdoms. One interpretation assigns this work to the Kom of the northwestern Grassfields, who preserved the skulls of deceased ancestors with the belief that the skulls contained their spirits. The head was therefore an important subject for the region’s artists. Performed at elite male funerals, this headdress was worn atop the head while netting covered the masquerader’s face.

Information

Title
Mask (kam or akam)
Dates

before 1979

Maker

Cameroon Grassfields

Medium
Wood, human hair, plant fiber, and organic material
Dimensions
43.2 x 26.7 x 16.5 cm (17 x 10 1/2 x 6 1/2 in.)
Credit Line
Museum Acquisition from the Holly and David Ross Collection, with the support of the Fowler McCormick Fund
Object Number
2015-6
Place Made

Africa, Cameroon, Cameroon Grassfields

Culture
African
Type
masks (costume)
Materials
plant fiber, organic material, string (fiber product), human hair, wood
Techniques
carving
Subject
men, funerals, masquerades, rituals (events), faces

Jean Edouard Charpentier, Abidjan, Ivory Coast; [Michael Oliver, New York, NY, purchased in Abidjan ca. 1975-79]; [Alexander Gallery, St. Louis, MO by 1986]; Holly and David Ross, Princeton, NJ, 1986-2015; Princeton University Art Museum, 2015

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