Mask, Northern Sango or Vuvi; Gabon
Wood, pigments; H. 13 1/2"
Masks of this particular type have
often been attributed to the Vuvi or Pove people
in Gabon, although Siroto depicts a very similar
mask that he attributes to the northern Sango (Siroto,
1995). Though a Vuvi style does indeed exist and
is more abstracted, the lesser known Sango examples
seem to be less stylized in their overall conception
and may well have fallen victim to the pseudo-ethnology
of the art market attempting to increase their pecuniary
value by association. Siroto likens masks of this
type to the white-faced masks of the Ogowe River
area (fig. 67) and suggests a possible analogous
function. The arching brows and simple smiling face
of this mask are pleasing and well proportioned,
while the carver displayed an adept ability in integrating
these seemingly simple constituent parts into a
truly complex whole.
