African ritual masks are carved from wood, stone, copper or other materials and decorated. They are used in ceremonies to communicate with ancestors during events like births, deaths, weddings and initiations. Only certain people like elders or leaders can wear masks representing spirits or cultural ideals. Masks use symbolism rather than realism, and their meaning depends on the ceremonial context. Common motifs include ancestors, animals, and ideals of beauty or fertility. Specific masks described are used in initiation rites or dances to teach virtues and connect to the supernatural world. African masks have influenced Western art movements through their symbolic forms.
3. How are they made?
Most African ritual masks
are carved from wood,
though some are made from
stone, copper, bronze, fabric,
or pottery.
Masks are often painted and
decorated with animal hair,
teeth, or horns, shells, straw,
feathers, and other materials
found in nature.
4. Purpose of Ritual Masks
Used in religious ceremonies, or to celebrate milestones such as:
birth
death/funerals
weddings
Initiation rites (ex. becoming a man)
harvesting
Used to communicate with ancestors or spirits
These cultures believe that when a person wears a mask, they
transform into the spirit or person represented by the mask.
5. Who Can Wear the Masks?
Only certain people are
allowed to wear the masks -
they are usually reserved
for men of a high social
status, or tribal elders.
Some masks can only be
work by those in power,
such as chieftains, kings,
witch-doctors, or warriors.
6. Symbolism
African masks are rarely
realistic. Instead, they use
symbolism to express meaning,
moral values, virtues, or ideals.
In order to truly understand
the symbolic purpose of the
mask, it must been observed in
context - while used during a
traditional dance - otherwise
the meaning is lost.
7. Common Subjects
Ancestors
often represented by a human skull, and contain sexual
symbols
Animals
Can represent the actual animal, or a specific virtue (ex.
strength, power, intelligence, etc.).
Feminine Beauty
depicts the culture’s ideal beauty
often only men can wear these masks
8. Ndeemba
Yaka peoples, Angola, Democratic Republic of the
Congo
This mask is worn by the
initiation leaders during the
initiation rites of boys.
It represents the face of the
Yaka ancestors who
established the ceremonies.
The mask symbolizes male
sexuality and fertility.
9. Kanaga Mask
Dogon peoples, Mali
This mask is made by the Dogon people
in Mali.
The symbol on the top of the mask is
called Kanaga. It represents the
primordial energy of the universe and
the first human beings.
It is worn during the Dama dance.
which opens a bridge to the
supernatural world, allowing the dead
to cross over into the realm of ancestors.
10. Mwana Pwo
Chokwe peoples, Zaire and Angola
This mask is worn during
the initiation for boys.
It represents a young
female ancestor who died
early.
The dancer’s performance
teaches good manners, and
brings fertility to the
women in the village.
11. Chiwara
Bambara peoples, Mali
The discovery of agriculture is
credited to the hero Chi Wara, a
half antelope, half human figure
who came to earth to teach
humans to sow crops, and thus is
honored at both sowing and
harvest festivals.
Female Chiwara masks are
denoted by the presence of a baby
antelope and straight horns. Male
Chiwara masks have bent horns
and a phallus.
12. Influences on Western Art
Masks are one of the elements of African art that have most
evidently influenced European and Western art in general; in
the 20th century, artistic movements such as cubism, fauvism
and expressionism have often taken inspiration from the vast
and diverse heritage of African masks.
Influences of this heritage can also be found in other
traditions such as South- and Central American masked
Carnival parades.
