Guli mask, Baule, Côte d'Ivoire

Guli mask, Baule, Ivory Coast, first half of the twentieth century.
In carved wood.
Provenance: Pon's collection (Europe), from the 70s. European Private Collection.
Measurements: 47 cms.height.
Guli mask from the Baule ethnic group. Of zoomorphic features, with antlers, it represents a supernatural creature, an animal spirit. Among the aspects that characterize the Baule, the cult to the ancestors and the importance of the spirits of the nature can be emphasized. Their beliefs in these non-human powers are organized in large socio-political-religious societies. Dances and games with anthropomorphic and zoomorphic masks play an important role in religious ceremonies as well as in social or community festivities.