African Arts Gallery

This type of mask from the Gyé, or Dyé society, banned, could not be seen by women. African mask from Ivory Coast, sacred mask embodying a spirit of nature, it is similar to the Zamblé, a mythical male hero. Often narrow and curved, it presents a lively polychromy.

Among the Mande group from the south, in central Ivory Coast, on the banks of the Bandama, the Gouro are organized into lineages. Animists, they have used a family of masks associated with the Zaouli dance since the 1950s. Guro masks, linked to the geniuses of nature, come in two zoomorphic masks followed by a third anthropomorphic. These masks are the property of families practicing the cult of lineage ancestors, who make ritual and sacrificial use of them in order to attract divine blessings. Priest and diviner share the predominant ritual functions among the Guro. Secret associations worship the geniuses of nature. The gu, gye and dye masks, in the hands of notables, are only exhibited during major funerals or the enthronement of a leader (Kerchache)