GU GOURO MASK, Ivory Coast Hard wood with internal... Lot 225

GU GOURO MASK, Ivory Coast Hard wood with internal brown patina, pigments. H. 33,5 cm Gu mask, depicting a young girl meeting the traditional beauty criteria of the Gouro. Under the gently sloping forehead, the eyes open into two discreet slits under very delicately curved eyelids. The straight, fine nose overhangs a diamond-shaped mouth revealing teeth filed down according to local standards. The hairstyle, made up of fine striated locks, is the pretext for a geometric ornamentation tinted, like the keloids and the eyebrows, with black pigments. At the top, a kowogni braid, an evocation of the mythological hornbill, held in place by the representation of Koranic amulets or sene. On the reverse side, a beautiful hollowed out mouth and eyes.