African Arts Gallery

This type of African mask embodying the female ancestor mwana pwo, often decked out with buttons and accessories of European origin, was worn by an initiate of higher rank. This modest-sized copy uses conventional aesthetic criteria, fine lines, facial scarifications, filed teeth. Blackened matte patina, gaps, erosions.
Height on base: 32 cm.
Peacefully settled in eastern Angola until the 16th century, the Chokwé were then subjected to the Lunda empire from which they inherited a new hierarchical system and the sacredness of power. African Chokwe pwo masks, among the many akishi (sing: mukishi, indicating power) masks of African Chokwe art, embody an ideal of beauty, Mwana Pwo, or the woman Pwo and appear nowadays during festive ceremonies. Joined to their male counterparts, chihongo recognizable by their large plate-shaped headdress, the pwo are believed to bring fertility and prosperity to the community.
(source: Chokwe, B. Wastiau)