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Label Text The blackened face, the bulging tube-like eyes, the deep facial cuts and the diagonal markings extending downward from the eyes are characteristic of Ekpo masks. Ekpo ('ancestor") is a secret society of the Ibibio and other neighboring tribes, and its exercise of judicial authority makes it perhaps the most dominant and powerful of the societies. The highly sculptural qualities of the mask create a play of contrasting light and shadow over its textured surface. The mask is made of wood and retains some chalk-like rubbings. Source: Bulletin, January-February, 1981
Exhibition HistoryAfrican Art from the Collection of Julian and Irma Brody" Des Moines Art Center, Mar. 18- Apr. 20, 1975. cat. no. 70, repro.
Published ReferencesSupplement to the March issue of Gazette des Beaux Arts in the article "La Chronique des Arts-- Principales Acquisitions des Musees en 1980" repro. p. 46
Maker
Igbo, Nigeria
DimensionsOverall: 9 × 6 1/2 × 4 in. (22.9 × 16.5 × 10.2 cm)
Accession Number 1980.22
ClassificationsAfrican/Oceanic/Pre-Columbian
CopyrightPublic Domain

Images (4)

Photo Credit: Rich Sanders, Des  Moines
Photo Credit: Rich Sanders, Des  Moines
Photo Credit: Rich Sanders, Des  Moines
Photo Credit: Rich Sanders, Des  Moines
Okoroshi Ojo Mask
Photo Credit: Rich Sanders, Des  Moines
Photo Credit: Rich Sanders, Des Moines
Photo Credit: Rich Sanders, Des Moines
Anonymous
date unknown
Photo Credit: Rich Sanders, Des Moines
Anonymous
date unknown
Photo Credit: Rich Sanders, Des Moines
Anonymous
date unknown
Photo Credit: Rich Sanders, Des Moines
Anonymous
date unknown
Photo Credit: Rich Sanders, Des Moines
Anonymous
date unknown
Photo Credit: Rich Sanders, Des Moines
Anonymous
date unknown
Photo Credit: Rich Sanders, Des Moines
Anonymous
date unknown
Photo Credit: Rich Sanders, Des Moines
Anonymous
date unknown
Photo Credit: Rich Sanders, Des Moines
Anonymous
date unknown
Photo Credit: Rich Sanders, Des Moines
Anonymous
date unknown
Photo Credit: Rich Sanders, Des Moines
Anonymous
date unknown
Photo Credit: Rich Sanders, Des Moines
Anonymous
date unknown