Ceremonial knife used in a wedding exchange; curved metal blade with three holes, wooden handle with decorative metal wrap near the blade; origin Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly Zaire), Mangbetu people.
Wooden male fetish figure, hands joined together under chin, helmet-like head covering, rectangular box cut into center; origin Epulu, Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly Zaire).
Oval ancestoral or spirit board with abstract designs. Ancestor boards are kept in men's ceremonial houses and can represent personal spirits or simply be used for decoration. Origin Papua New Guinea.
Wooden ceremonial mask made for the Bwadi ya Kifwebe association, a group that polices social behavior and neutralizes disruptive elements within the Luba people of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The masks are worn in a variety of ceremonies.
Wooden figure with both animal and human features, bowl-shaped headpiece; wood is soft, appears to be a fetish figure; origin Ndaka people, Ituri forest, Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly Zaire).
N'domo mask used in the second of seven initiation rituals for boys of the Bambara people of Mali. The decorated vertical wooden posts represent the wisdom of the cosmos and the long nose symbolizes vitality.
Mask used during the performance of tambuan (or tumbuan) dances. It is woven from raffia and and has a beak, cross-hatched crown, circular eyes, and reeds projecting from circular ear rings. Origin Papua New Guinea.
Raffia doll in a ceremonial Sierra Leonian costume, holding the country's flag in one hand and a stick in the other. There is a round mirror on the front and back of the mask.
Tall wooden mask with a rectangular box for the head. The top portion depicts a female figure below a perched bird with a downward thrusting arrow. Origin is either Dogon or Mossi people of Burkina Faso.
