Bundu or Sowei helmet mask from the Sandé female... Lot 36

Bundu or Sowei helmet mask from the Sandé female secret society, Mende, Sierra Leone First half of the 20th century Wood, pigments H. 38 cm The Mende people, who live in Sierra Leone on the borders of Liberia and Guinea Conakry, are descendants of the ancient Mani and are one of the Mandigue peoples who made up the former Mali empire. In 1978, Ruth B. Philips, in her ethnographic study, explained the initiation ritual for young girls into the Sande women's secret society. The secret Sande ritual, which took place in the bush, was designed to educate the young woman, preparing her for her future life, by instilling in her the social values of the community: modesty, diligence, respect for their elders, but also by providing domestic instruction for their role as future mothers and wives. According to Alldridge, in 1901, the hierarchy of Sande society, the counterpart of male Poro society, was composed of three levels. During ceremonies, women wore bundu helm masks designed to embody and represent the ideal woman. Suggesting the spirits of fertility, these masks were worn exclusively by older women who had already reached the highest level of the hierarchical society. The features of our specimen are of great finesse, presenting the classic typological characteristics of Bundu masks. The almond-shaped eyes, stretched out and delicately closed, are magnified by small scarifications extending over the temples and a skilful interplay of planes, between the rounded forehead and superciliary arches and the slightly recessed gaze. Fine nose, naturalistic lips hemmed in for a slight smile. The rounded cheeks respond to the movement of the hemmed shapes on her neck, signifying rows of necklaces. The headdress is elaborate, the hair signified by rows of striations suggesting that it is braided and then pulled back into a bun above the head, ending in a point. The deep black patina, shiny in places, attests to its traditional use: these masks were often blackened with decomposed leaves, then covered with oil to obtain a dark, sometimes shiny patina, as here.