Headdress Representing an Antelope

Origin: Kurumba Tribe, Burkina Faso
Composition: wood, glass beads, cowrie shells, cotton, glass mirrors, paint, pigments

Kurumba masks were used during major events associated with the commemoration of the ancestors together with the spirits of the protective antelope, Hippotragus koba, that is the totem of most Kurumba clans. The geometric patterns painted on mask are symbols that refer to major events in the myths of the founding of the clan, and the masks themselves represent the heroic antelope that played a role in these stories when it saved the life of the founding elder. The Kurumba are a very small tribe that inhabit northern Burkina Faso (Ref: Huet and Paudrat, "The Dance, Art, and Ritual of Africa").

This is one of the very few Kurumba masks SUJARO has collected, as most examples on the market are poor quality reproductions from Cameroon and South Africa. This piece was purchased from one of the top dealers in Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso in 2007. At first glance, it appears to have a serious mood to it, but it becomes more whimsical and playful with time, at least for us.