IDNO

LS.52073.GIJ

Description

A close up view of a masquerader wearing a fierce Ekpo society mask. The mask consists of a dark wooden face mask with a high indented forehead, inset eyes, nose and mouth with raffia hair attached to the mask; the mask is painted with a white paint or chalk. The mask has pieces of cloth or handkerchiefs attached to it. The masquerader is holding a wooden machete that is white with black cross or X markings in his hand. In the background are attendants of the masquerade.

Place

Africa; Nigeria

Cultural Affliation

Ibibio

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.52067.GIJ to LS.52076.GIJ were found inside a cardboard box now numbered C247/6/1/. This box was inside a paper bag now numbered C247/6/ 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: Jones provides a detailed description of the masks and the costumes of the Ekpo society. He writes, "Ekpo masks, like those of northern Ibo, could be divided into ‘beautiful’ and ‘fierce’. The beautiful ones were said to be white, though most of those collected by Murray and myself were black like the fierce ones. But this was due to the conditions under which they had been preserved. Before they were used again, according to our informants, they would have had to be repainted. Most Ibibio masks, until the 1930s, were stained and polished black, in the case of the fierce ones, or coloured white or white and light brown with local pigments. The more modern ones were coloured with imported and mainly oil paints in most of the colours that found favour in other parts of Eastern Nigeria.The finest and oldest of the Anang (Ibibio) masks were used in the Ekpo masquerades, which tried to emphasise their timeless antiquity both in their masks and in their costumes; these remained the traditional ones of raffia fringes, cloaks and skirts which ended at the knees leaving the arms and legs of the actor bare and free for active movement. The Ekpo characters, particularly the fierce ones (and these were in the majority), were intended to inspire respect and admiration but were heavily laden with fear and mystery; to heighten these effects their raffia costumes were dyed black." (Jones, 1984, pp. 182-183).

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

This catalogue record has been updated with the support of the Getty Grant Program Two. [Alicia Fentiman 26/3/2008]