Wood mask, 'Bobo Cane Head'

The visage of courage, this mask is a captivating personification of Bobo pride. The Bobos escaped Moshie subjugation and settled around Bobo Dioulasso, west of Burkina Faso. They are renowned for their masking traditions, for they developed several types to be worn for special celebrations, especially at funerals or when honoring the deity they call Do, to whom they pray for rain and fertile lands. This mask is hand-carved with manual tools from dried sese wood, embellished with white clay and adorned with a raffia crown. Louis K. Botchway and Bomukasa proudly present the piece, the excellence of the workmanship evident in the refined vivification of the mask.