IDNO

LS.52058.GIJ

Description

A frontal view of a skin covered mask for the Ikem masquerade. The profile shows a humanistic, realistic face with inset eyes, pointed nose, open lips with white teeth, and an elaborat coiffure of horn like projections and dark "braided" thread to resemble hair. Around the neck is necklace and attached to the mask is raffia. There are spectators in the background.

Place

Africa; Nigeria

Cultural Affliation

Igbo [historically Ibo]; Ozu Item

Named Person

Photographer

Jones, Gwilliam Iwan (known as G.I.)

Collector / Expedition

Date

circa 1930 - 1939

Collection Name

Jones Collection

Source

Jones, Gwilliam Iwan (known as G.I.)

Format

Lantern Slide Black & White

Primary Documentation

Other Information

LS.52058.GIJ to LS.52066.GIJ were found with the piece of paper now numbered C247/5/ which was in wooden box formerly numbered 22. It has now been renumbered C247/ by the cataloguer.

The inscription on the box as well as a descriptive list of slides pasted on the inside lid of the box indicates that it originally contained lantern slides from the Fens and belonged to D.G. Reid.

However, the lantern slides are attributed to G.I. Jones because the handwriting on the papers found inside wooden box C246/ is similar to the handwriting on the papers found inside wooden box C247/.

Context: The Ikem masquerade consisted of masquerades with skin covered heads, the older ones depicting a character, said to be male, called Ajonku, the more recent depicting a female character with a long neck and exaggerated horns called Ikem an and a fierce male one with a Janus shoulder mask (Jones, 1989, p.52.)

Context: Jones writes that we can distinguish a Cross River style which consisted of a very limited number of forms, mainly heads with human features which sought to be as realistic as possible, the skin being added to the carving, according to some informants, in order to achieve a greater realism. Talbot maintained that the skin was human but Campbell’s researches did not confirm this. The classic forms considered the finest by Europeans and Nigerians alike were a female head with a long neck and hair bound up into elaborate ‘horns’ and a large Janus-type shoulder mask. The female mask was said to be beautiful and the shoulder mask was usually represented as fierce and masculine; the tallness and slenderness of the one and the breadth and solidity of the other were exaggerated in the sculpture. These types were diffused as far east as the Bangwa and as far west as the Anang. There were, however, plenty of other heads representing male or female characters with or without necks and ranging from the naturalistic to the very crude, depending on the capabilities of the carver and the idiosyncrasies of local taste. (Jones, 1984, p.191-192).

Bibliographical Reference: Jones, G.I., 1984. The Art of Eastern Nigeria (Cambridge University Press)

Jones, G.I. 1989. Ibo Art (Shire)

This catalogue record has been updated with the support of the Getty Grant Program Two. [Alicia Fentiman 18/3/2008]