#Moyamba

[efdaglobal-ltd]

President Bio Host ECOWAS Members Of Parliament

ECOWAS Members Of Parliament Pays A cortesy Visit To The President Julius Maada Bio His Excellency President Dr Julius Maada Bio has welcomed and saluted the new Members of Parliament, MPs, sworn in to address Sierra Leone at the group Economic Community of West African States, ECOWAS, Parliament in Abuja and wished them achievement. The four MPs, Hon. Veronica Kadie Sesay, from the Moyamba…

[fopradio]

Voter Apathy & Voter Alienation: Signs and Symptoms for Sierra Leone’s Upcoming Elections.

From the inception of democratisation in the history of Sierra Leone under the patriarchal leadership of the APC’s one party state, we have never seen political aspirants, leaders, stakeholders and sympathisers of political parties pleading with potential voters to engage in voter registration exercise on a massive scale like now for the upcoming 2023 presidential, parliamentary and local council elections.

This massive mobilisation, unannounced fore knowledge on district lock downs, transport tokens, vehicle and motor bike incentives have raised eyebrows steering our thoughtful processes on several issues with “why questions” requiring answers from those at the helm of affairs of our country and localities.

Those questions that comes to mind are as follows;

1. Are politicians doing their work well to enthuse potential voters?

2. Has the incumbent government delivered on its promises and are they felt by ordinary citizens?

3. If manifesto promises are being met, are they the felt need of the people given the current economic challenge?

4. Is reluctance by citizens to register directly linked with local representative in local councils within districts or the entire country or presidency?

5. Do citizens feel alienated about the political process?

6. Are the expectations of citizens met?

7. Are they tired of broken promises or forced implementation of rules without due regards for humanity?

8. Are social contract being bridged by politicians as in the case of the citizen’s manifesto as of last 2018 elections?

9. Is the incumbent government over zealous about priorities or are they misplaced in the first place?

The list goes on. What is clear is that reluctance and early signs of ill motivation was saying something before the incentives of late. From verbal statement and cavalier approach by citizens towards voter registration, it is clear the people aren’t happy at all.

While the figures may present otherwise in comparison to yester years of voter registration following stakeholder involvement and incentives, voter sensitisation and motivation are at their very low ebb. The same is so for motivation for prospective voters taking on their heels for registration and in fact on the day ballots are cast. There is no guarantee current voter registration will get up to 70% turnout haven observed the registration turn out and expression heard from potential voters during our media investigations. There are hopes for reversal if the current complaints are dealt with urgently and if an unbiased selection of political candidature is employed-the people’s choices. No matter how new or old they may be in politics or political parties.

The figures for first time voters and registration may be rising generally but the back-end work is quite tedious. Pleading, incentives and persuasive words leading to some form of covert compel is at its high state. The majority of prospective voters express no interest in the initial stage of the voting process which is registration before incentives. Vox pop from citizens depict elections do not bring any benefits to them and that the main reason for their turnout is for identification purposes only. Would this change in the coming months?

Given the aforementioned approaches by various players including key stake holders, I am inclined to ask few questions.

Are we heading for voter apathy or are there manifested traits of felt alienation in the governing process of previously elected persons within the country? Will the introduction of a proportional representation (PR system) of voting compound such position further?

Certainly, stakeholders including reverends, Imams, paramount chiefs, section chiefs and tribal heads have joined the process to motivate would be voters. These persons under normal circumstances would have otherwise exhibited their neutrality being public servants. Conversely, they are now buried in the guise of voter registration mobilisation demonstrating desperation and feeling the pinch of price hikes and community unrest hovering around tribal sentiments. Certainly, another question looms in the mind. How apolitical are our local and tribal leaders in politics in the last 10 years? Have we desecrated those sanctities for political gains? Are public figures being patriotic on the other hand to ensure peoples voices through the ballot boxes are heard? How do we re-engineer a politically correct aloofness for tribal, section and paramount chiefs or other public figures who should act as observers and moral guarantors for all political parties? Are we nurturing bad precedence here? Who can call the shot off in local governance and in our law books on the outright involvement of local leaders in politics? 

Given the recent voter registration turn out and the mid-term census which is contentious, the PR system is imminent. My point is what will it bring to the table in this current political dilemma for the incumbent and main opposition parties? Will forced acceptance of no alternative with powers heavily handed over to political parties to do at will what they like, maybe for the next five years, deepen the voter apathetic and alienation pathway of our politics?

Should the SLPP led government feel a slap in the face for the mid-term census result considering voter registration turnout? How can the midterm census activity be justified if the PR system is introduced. Was tax payers' money wasted? Is the intent for PR exposing further the porosity and language used in our constitution? Would section 38a of the act of parliament of the public Elections 2022 be implement not meeting relevant conditions as set in preceding and succeeding clauses?

Written by FOP Media.

[raskild]

Moyamba, Sierra Leone, Westafrica, Dec. 2016

[innocentamit]

In Sierra Leone's swamps, female farmers make profits and peace | Agriculture News

In Sierra Leone’s swamps, female farmers make profits and peace | Agriculture News

Matagelema, Sierra Leone – Hourly table Not long after daybreak in Matagelema, a village in the south of Sierra Leone’s Moyamba District, a jubilant chorus rings out from a stretch of a once-neglected swamp surrounded by tropical forest. “When we are plowing, people are getting jealous,” dozens of women farmers sing gleefully, ankle-deep in mud in a sprawling paddy field. Through their…

[reportwire]

In Sierra Leone’s swamps, female farmers make profits and peace | Agriculture News

In Sierra Leone’s swamps, female farmers make profits and peace | Agriculture News

Matagelema, Sierra Leone – Not long after daybreak in Matagelema, a village in the south of Sierra Leone’s Moyamba District, a jubilant chorus rings out from a stretch of a once-neglected swamp surrounded by tropical forest. “When we are ploughing, people are getting jealous,” dozens of women farmers sing gleefully, ankle-deep in mud in a sprawling paddy field. Through their backbreaking work –…

[fopradio]

Paramount Chief Elections At Fakunya Chiefdom Moyamba District Concluded Peacefully.

Following all protocols as depicted by the Chieftency Elections Acts and Provisions of Sierra Leone's law of 2009, Funkyna Chiefdom chieftency elections located within Moyamba district reached its fall peacefully.

Four bonified households were presented as candidates for the said elections though with contention that the winning house do not merit the rights to the chieftency already conducted. The contention with potential petition, would likely come from the Ngaqui and the Panda households. The merit of such petition would be interesting to follow some members of the public opined.

In any case, the Fakunya Chieftency election went on and was completed well. On lookers and dignitaries present as provisioned for in law, exemplifies a free and fair election. There were no fights as at entry time of this report.

After first round elections leading to a run-off, the contest remained between two relatives from the same ruling house-hold namely, Samuel and Moses Bengeh.

Following diligent and transparent count of votes, the Permanent Secretary South, declares Samuel Hindoveh Bengeh the paramount Chief of Fakunya Chiefdom in Moyamba District who had 360 votes casted in his favor.

This declaration will be followed by government ascent through the Local Government Minister following which the president or his appointee will handover a Paramount Chief Staff upon receipt of an attestation document signed by Assessor Chiefs as endorsed by the Provincial Secretary South pending the absence of any petition.

[femaleinafrica]

By Sec Female in Sierra Leone Moyamba District which is currently named as the action group, today donated Veronica buckets and foam soaps to the Moyamba Correctional Center (Prison), the Sierra Leone Police Family Support Unit, Moyamba District Children's Awareness Radio, Ministry of Agriculture and the Moyamba Main Market. According to the Female in Sierra Leone District Pioneer Mrs. Isatu Aminata Iron Lady Peacock, the move is to join in the fight against Covid -19. She said hand washing should be a normal hygiene practice with or without any outbreak as it will promote a healthy living for all. She urged all to ensure all visitors wash their hands before accessing their office. The recipient in turn expressed satisfaction and appreciation and described the move as laudable and timely. The Support officer at the Moyamba Police Station pledge their full support in working with Female in Sierra Leone at all times .Other recipients expressed similar centiments. Female in Sierra Leone We...Are .....Special. https://www.instagram.com/p/B-Ig93KJ-8z/?igshid=gi85v6wciisa

[hanmaima]

Look what my people are doing to me🤩🤩 Love like no other💃🏽 (at Moyamba, Sierra Leone) https://www.instagram.com/p/B6bbIXWpYH7/?igshid=wq71mec1vd8l

[kemetic-dreams]

The Mende belong to a larger group of Mande peoples who live throughout West Africa. The Mende are mostly farmers and hunters. During the civil war the Civil Defense Force (CDF), a militia group, was founded by late Dr. Alpha Lavalie, a Mende himself, to fight the rebels along government troops. The forces included five groups drawn from all major ethnic groups in the country: Tamaboros, Hunters, Donso, Kapras, and the Kamajors.

Kamajor is a Mende term for hunter; they were not only the dominant warring factions but the most fearful among the CDF militias headed by late Deputy Minister of Defense, Chief Hinga Norman. To date, the Kamajors are honored among the elite groups of men and women who fought to restore democracy in modern Sierra Leone.

The Mendes are divided into Kpa-Mende, who are predominantly in the South - in Moyamba district, the Golah-Mende, from the Gola forest between Kenema and Pujehun districts into Liberia - a national reservation landmark, Sewa-Mende, who settled along the Sewa Rive, Vai-Mende also in Liberia and Pujehun district, Sierra Leone and the Koh-Mende who are the dominant tribe in Kailahun district with the Kissi (Ngessi) and Gbandi both of who are in Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Guinea.

The secret "Poro" society is for men while "Sande" society for women both of whom initiate the young into adulthood. Those who join either of the male or female secret societies are referred to as: The halemo are members of the hale or secret societies, and kpowa are people who have never been initiated into the hale. The Mende believe that all humanistic and scientific power is passed down through the secret societies.

The Mende language is widely spoken in Liberia more so in areas once considered part of Liberia. In the year 1984, then President Samuel Doe threatened to retake the part of Sierra Leone that was once Liberia. Both countries have Mende, Gola, Vai, Gissi and Gbandi tribes but the Mende are the dominant population.

Mende names are common in Liberia including towns that share names on both side of the border; for example, Guma Mende is popular section in Loffa, Liberia and those living along the borders claim dual citizenship

Oral tradition amongst the Balanta has it that they migrated westward from the area that is now Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia to escape drought and wars. During the 19th century, they spread throughout the area that is now Guinea-Bissau and southern Senegal in order to resist the expansion of the Kaabu kingdom. Today, the Balanta are mostly found in the southern and central regions of 🇬🇼

The ethnogenesis of the Fulani people may have begun as a result of interactions between an ancient West African population and North African populations such as Berbers or Egyptians.Their West African roots may be in and around the valley of Senegal River.They likely reflect a genetic intermix of people with West African, North African, and Arabian origins, and have been a part of many ruling dynasties particularly in the Sahel and West Africa.Speculations about their origins started in the era of European conquest and colonization. In 1902, Edmund Dene Morel equated the ancient Romans' Leucæthiopes with the people the Tarikh al-Sudan placed at the head of the Ghana empire, who (Morel claims the Tarikh al-Soudan says) were "white" and whose monarch had a Fulfulde affix.

The Mandés were initially a part of many fragmented kingdoms that formed after the collapse of Ghana empire in the 11th century.During the rule of Sundiata Keita, these kingdoms were consolidated, and the Mandinka expanded west from the Niger River basin under Sundiata's general Tiramakhan Traore. This expansion was a part of creating a region of conquest, according to the oral tradition of the Mandinka people. This migration began in the later part of the 13th century.

Charlemagne and Dj Envy African Ancestral lineages

[standingatthefence]

Paul Julien | Snake Dancer Fili, Moyamba, Sierra Leone (1934)

[sergioleyvaphotography]

Oldest members of the Menda Society, a secret society from Upper Banta specialised on traditional healing.

Mokepi, Moyamba province.

[africaprimenews]

Sierra Leone: President Bio Calls for More Public-Private Partnership in National Development

Sierra Leone: President Bio Calls for More Public-Private Partnership in National Development

  …Commissions Le 2.7 Billion Early Childhood Development Centre President Dr Julius Maada Bio  Monday commissioned a Le 2.7 billion Christ the King Pre-Primary School at Moyamba Junction, some 165km from Freetown, built and donated by Mercury International as part of their Corporate Social Responsibility. Managing Director of the company, Martin Michael Esq, said that since 2018 when President…

[judchuks1]

Sierra Leone: COVID-19 Updates (Tuesday, 30 June 2020)

Sierra Leone: COVID-19 Updates (Tuesday, 30 June 2020)

FREETOWN, Sierra Leone, June 30, 2020/APO Group/ —

New cases: 12

Confirmed cases: 1,462

At Isolation Centres: 428

Recovered: 974

Deaths: 60

In quarantine: 1,773

Out of quarantine: 7,362

Gender Confirmed

Female – 727 Male – 735

Places Confirmed cases by districtBo 100 Bonthe 49 Bombali 30 Falaba 4 Kailahun 28 Kambia 28 Karene 2 Kono 60 Kenema 104 Koinadugu 7 Moyamba 46 Portloko 25 Pujehun 6 Ton…

[afrikanza]

African Masks Examined: History, Type, Role, Meaning & Examples

One of the most enduring and fascinating aspects of African culture is masks. In Western museums and private collections, they are treated as artistic objects appreciated for their aesthetic qualities. However, their role in African society is more functional than artistic.

Read on and you will learn everything you need to know about the African mask tradition.

Ancient African Masks

Africans have been making masks since prehistory. The earliest evidence we have for masking in Africa comes from rock paintings in Algeria at Tassili n’Ajjer.

These show masks that look a lot like contemporary West African masks and date to about 11,000 years ago. We don’t know how these masks were used though.

The function of ancient Egyptian masks, however, is better known.

The most famous of these is the boy king Tutankhamun’s gold funerary mask, which was placed on his mummy and weighed a whopping 22.5 pounds (10 kilos).

Funerary mask of Tutankhamun. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:CairoEgMuseumTaaMaskMostlyPhotographed.jpg

Made from two sheets of gold: the face and neck are made from 18.4-carat gold and the rest is made from 22.5-carat gold. It is decorated with a number of precious stones.

Throughout ancient Egyptian history, funerary masks of lesser artistic quality were placed on mummies of common people.

There are three known types of masks depicting animal-headed gods from ancient Egypt. A priest wore a mask of the jackal-god Anubis mask during funerary rituals, which are depicted in Egyptian art.

Two such masks also survive. One is a light wooden mask that would have sat on top of the head but the other is a clay helmet that weighs a whopping 17 pounds!

Masks of the lion-headed god Bes also were used in rituals, including perhaps puberty rituals, as depicted in one tomb where a masked individual accompanied dancing boys. (1)

Priests wore masks of the falcon-headed god Horus during various religious rituals as well.

Types of African Masks

African masks take on different forms. They may only cover the face, or go over the entire head, cover part of the torso, or be a headdress that rests on top of the head.

Some are very small, some are life-size, and others are gigantic.

Some masks represent animals, either in their form or by incorporating actual parts of animals into their production.

Others represent male or female figures. Those that represent women generally take on an idealized view of female beauty.

10 Examples of African Masks

The number of types of African masks probably reaches into the hundreds, primarily among the cultures of West and Central Africa.

Below is a sampling of ten types of masks, their uses and the cultures with which they are associated.

Kanaga

Mask (Kanaga), Mali, Dogon peoples, 20th century, wood, fiber, hide, pigment, 53.6 x 97.2 x 15.9 cm (The Metropolitan Museum of Art)

The Kanaga mask is a funerary mask worn by the Dogon people of Mali intended to ensure the safe passage of the deceased to the otherworld where his ancestors are. (2)

Kòmòkunw

Alternate view, Kòmò Helmet Mask (Kòmòkun), 19th–mid-20th century, Guinea or Mali or Burkina Faso or Côte d’Ivoire, West Africa, Komo or Koma Power Association, Wood, bird skull, porcupine quills, horns, cotton, sacrificial materials, 35.2 x 22.1 x 85.6 cm (The Metropolitan Museum of Art)

The threatening-looking Kòmò Helmet Mask is worn by the Bamana people of Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso, and Côte d’Ivoire. Secret societies wear the mask during private meetings where they learn about the society’s history, rituals and beliefs. (3)

Nwatantay

Mask (Nwantantay), Burkina Faso, Black Volta River region, Bwa peoples. 19th–20th century, wood, pigment, and fiber, 182.9 x 28.2 x 26 cm (The Metropolitan Museum of Art)

The Nwatantay mask of the Bwa people of Burkina Faso represents natural spirits that cannot be seen by humans. The designs of the masks teach important moral and social lessons during dances performed for funerals, agricultural rituals, and initiations. (4)

Helmet Mask

Helmet Mask, 19th-20th century, Sierra Leone, Moyamba region, Mende or Sherbro peoples, wood, metal, 47.9 x 22.2 x 23.5cm (The Metropolitan Museum of Art)

The helmet mask of the Mende people of Sierra Leone is unusual in that it is worn by female initiates of a young women’s association. While the face represents ideal female beauty, the beard indicates that women are equal to men in their knowledge. (5)

Okuyi

Private collection of author (Okuyi mask from Gabon) – Sydney, Australia (wikipedia.org/wiki/okuyi/)

The okuyi mask is worn among the Bantu people of Cameroon, Gabon, and Equatorial Guinea during rites of passage such as infants reaching 4 months of age, adolescence, and funerals. These rituals can last for hours and are accompanied by dancing and singing. (6)

Yaka

https://africa.si.edu/collections/view/objects/asitem/Objects@3491/4?t:state:flow=c57d372d-c31f-4221-8dac-e020dede7b0c

The nkanda of the Democratic Republic of Congo wear these masks during puberty and circumcision rites. They represent ancestors or important figures within their culture. (7)

Koro

https://africa.si.edu/collections/view/objects/asitem/6522/14/title-asc?t:state:flow=f786c1db-d461-465c-bf61-46990e416106

Muslim communities such as the Koro of Nigeria also use masks as part of rituals. The koro mask lacks any human or animal representations, in keeping with Islamic scripture. (8)

Lipike

https://www.plu.edu/africanartcollection/masks/makonde-mask-3/learn-more-makonde-mask-3/

Made by the Makonde people of Tanzania and Mozambique, these helmet masks featured prominently in rituals used during different life stages of children. (9)

Kponyungo

https://www.plu.edu/africanartcollection/masks/firespitter/learn-more-firespitter/

During three day long funerals of the Senufo tribe in Côte d’Ivoire, members of the secret male Poro society wear these masks while beating on drums next to the funerary bed. (10)

Bobo Tere

https://www.plu.edu/africanartcollection/masks/tere-mask/learn-more-tere-mask/

The Bobo people of Burkina Faso believe the son, Dwo, of the creator god, was left on earth to mediate between man and God. This mask represents him but does not depict him, because he cannot be seen, and is used in performances intended to maintain the balance of nature in the agricultural society. (11)

The Role of African Masks

Meaning and Function

African masks are not simply beautiful artistic objects to be admired. Rather, they are part of a ceremonial costume. They are not meant to represent actual people or even animals.

These masks served as a way for people to communicate with the spirit world. The spirits that take up residence in the masks can be ancestors or natural entities.

When the mask wearer puts on the mask, his identity is taken over by the spirit represented by the mask.

People are not even allowed to speak the name of the mask wearer because he is subsumed in the mask spirit’s identity.

African masks also serve as educational tools, as part of rituals to teach social roles and physical control or to settle disputes. All community members were required to attend Igbo masquerades in Nigeria, where the masked individuals would approach people and tell them the bad behavior they engaged in.

Uses

Masks play a central role in masquerades, during which the mask wearers danced accompanied by music.

Masks representing dead ancestors play an important role in African funerals. Masks are also worn during rites of passage, such as mass circumcision of boys or during initiation into secret societies.

Examples of African Masks Being Used in Rituals

Nigerian Igbo Masquerades

All community members were required to attend Igbo masquerades in Nigeria, where the masked individuals would approach people and tell them the bad behavior they engaged in.

Igbo initiates wearing tall masks made from calabash.

Dogon funeral in Mali

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Danse_de_masques_dogon_au_Mali.jpg

Tiriki circumcision ceremony in Kenya, where boys are secluded for four weeks.

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dancing_alongside_family.JPG

Masked figure with lion head and boys during a possible ancient puberty ritual.

https://research.britishmuseum.org/research/collection_online/collection_object_details/collection_image_gallery.aspx?partid=1&assetid=229649001&objectid=111363

The Making of an African Mask

Who Made African Masks?

African mask makers were often farmers or blacksmiths by trade or people who learned as apprentices from other artists, who they paid to teach them for two or three years.

Families often passed the tradition down from generation to generation. In most cultures, the mask maker was a respected member of society.

Carving a mask with an adze. https://www.kunst-aus-westafrika.com/scondjwin-dagnogo-images

The Design Process of African Masks

Inspiration

Highly stylized in design, African masks are not intended as portraits of real people. Mask designers usually follow traditional designs, especially ones that pleased spirits in the past.

By copying these carefully, the artists believe that they will attract other spirits to dwell in them.

Sometimes a person will have a dream that inspires the design of a mask.

They would then go to the local elders and describe the dream, and these elders would take a decision as to whether the mask should be made or not.

Patterns

Geometric and symmetrical patterns often play a prominent role in the design of African masks.

These include parallel lines, curves, spirals, and cruciform shapes all are found.

Certain patterns distinguish the two genders, with prominent bouffant hairstyles indicating women. Sometimes the patterns represent scarification of the face that is common in some African cultures.

Some are influenced by other faiths, such as crosses representing Christianity and patterns inspired by Islamic art.

Materials

The most important material used in mask making is wood.

Wood is plentiful in Africa’s forests. Trees are thought to possess a soul and therefore it is a good material to house the spirit of the mask.

Sometimes an offering or sacrifice is even made to the tree’s soul before it is chopped down.

African mask makers work with many materials including brass, copper, bronze, brass, terracotta and glazed pottery, raffia and fabrics.

Decorative elements they apply to masks include cowrie shells, beads, bone, animal skins, feathers, and vegetable fibers.

The pigments and dyes used to color the wood are natural materials such as clay, seeds, tree bark and leaves.

The Mask Making Process

The mask maker carves the mask using a traditional tool called an adze. This and his other tools each had a spirit that dwelled in it and a sacrifice had to be made to the tools before commencement of the work.

For the mask to be endowed with its intended powers, it needed to be consecrated by a priest, medicine man or magician.

Only through these rituals, which often involved adding magical substances to the mask, would the spirits who were intended to dwell in the mask take up their abode there.

Collections of African Masks

The history of African mask collecting has gone through several stages since Europeans began to collect masks in the 19th century during their colonial forays into Africa.

At first, Europeans treated masks as ethnographic objects, and displayed them in natural history museums alongside taxidermied animals, exotic plant remains and fossils.

By the early 20th century, the same masks came to be regarded as art objects and were collected by and displayed in art museums. (12)

Masks In Museums outside Africa

https://blackhawkmuseum.org/art-of-africa/

Many museums struggle with the ethics of collecting and displaying African masks, due to the way in which some of the masks were collected and the spiritual implications of the masks.

When considering a mask in the Brooklyn Museum collection for an exhibition, the curator discovered that the mask, donated to the museum in 1998, had actually been stolen from a shrine in Nigeria in 1948.

She consulted the descendants of the family that had fashioned the mask on what to do.

The curator and the family conducted a divination ceremony with the gods as part of the decision making process. The gods told them that the mask was no longer spiritually empowered so the museum put the mask on display with the family’s blessing. (13)

President Emmanuel Macron of France commissioned a report on the restitution of sub-Saharan African art to Africa and the authors recommended that art in French museums either be temporarily or permanently returned to the continent from whence it came. (14)

Some of the best museums outside Africa to view African masks include the National Museum of African Art in Washington, DC, and the Brooklyn Museum, Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Museum of Primitive Art in New York.

In Europe, the Royal Museum for Central Africa, Tervuren, Belgium, Musée d’Ethnographie du Trocadéro in Paris and the British Museum all have excellent collections.

Masks In African Museums

Unfortunately, some of the greatest collections of African masks are outside the continent. However, some African museums also display collections of masks.

Among the museums where you can see masks in Africa is the National Museum of Burkina Faso or the newly inaugurated National Museum in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The Dundo Museum in Angola displays masks that were previously looted but returned.

Famous Private Art Collections

Collecting African art and masks, in particular, became en vogue among famous 20th century European and American artists. (15)

The masks began being featured prominently in their artworks or inspiring them.

Among these are Man Ray’s surrealist photo Noire et Blanche, one of many photographs he produced that featured West African artworks that he collected.

Noire et Blanche by Man Ray.

After a visit to the ethnographic museum in Paris, Pablo Picasso also started collecting masks and went through a period when he painted paintings that were inspired by them.

However, critics have complained that these works are examples of cultural appropriation and that the original craftsmen who produced the masks were never compensated for their contribution to these works. (16)

Should You Buy an African Mask?

If you want to buy a historical & authentic African mask, be prepared to shell out a good sum of money. The record paid for an African mask was $7.5 million at an auction in 2006.

Picasso was said to have been inspired by the Ngil mask from the Feng culture, hence the high price.

You have to be careful when buying an African mask as forgeries are common. (17)

The same ethical considerations that museums face also make buying African masks as an individual collector tricky.

Some of these masks are stolen and Africans are increasingly engaging in campaigns to get them back.

For example, Congolese businessman Sindika Dokolo has been tracking stolen masks since 2014.

When he identifies one, he approaches the owner and asks for proof of how much they paid for the mask. He then makes them an offer to buy it at the same price. If they refuse, he sends his lawyers after them.

He has successfully returned a number of masks this way. (18)

However, there is an alternative for those who don’t have a lot of money to spend and don’t want to worry about legalities but want to get started collecting African masks.

Contemporary artists like Sefah Mohamed from Accra, and Abdul Aziz Mohamadu, sell their handmade masks at affordable prices online. (19, 20)

The demand for masks by tourists visiting Africa is so great that even in East Africa where they are less common, masks based on West African designs are sold in markets.

The Chinese have even gotten in on the business and some masks come with a “Made in China” sticker!

Frequently Asked Questions About African Masks

Where can I see an African mask dance (masquerade)?

Attending an African masquerade is a special experience that generally requires being part of African societies. However, mask dances are sometimes a focus of special tours to Africa, and Dogon mask dances are often performed specially for tourists.

What do African masks represent?

African masks represent spirits of the dead, and spirits representing natural phenomena.

Who wore African masks?

African masks were mostly worn by men because the spirits in the masks were seen as threatening to women.

What do the colors in African masks mean?

As they are worn across many different cultures, the colors of African masks have multiple meanings. However, several common meanings can be found for three colors: red, white and black.

Red is often used to represent blood spilled during wars or childbirth.

White signifies a mother’s milk or sperm, or the spirits of the ancestors.

Black represents the unknown. (21)

How long have African masks been around?

African masks are one of the oldest known forms of art. The earliest evidence of them is in the form of rock art from 11,000 years ago but they may be even older than that. It’s just that they aren’t preserved in the archaeological record.

What is the oldest African mask?

The oldest surviving African masks come from the Egyptian archaeological site of Hierakonpolis. These ceramic funerary masks had holes behind the ears to fit them over the face of the deceased person.

How can I make my own African mask?

Making an African mask is a great art project for kids that also helps them learn about cultures.

You might want to print out some of these line drawings of masks and then paste them on a piece of cardboard and cut out holes for the eyes, mouth, and nose. (22)

You can decorate it with paint, feathers, cotton, yarn, buttons, and tinfoil.

Here is a video example of just one way to make your own African mask!

Conclusion

African masks are one of the richest and most diverse artistic traditions in the world. While they are found in many of the world’s museums and art collections, these displays do not do justice to the important cultural role they play in performative rituals across much of the continent.

The post African Masks Examined: History, Type, Role, Meaning & Examples appeared first on Afrikanza.

[fopradio]

As Moyamba-Moyamba Junction road construction reaches 98% complete, Energy Minister, Kanjia Sesay accompanies concrete poles to Kaiyamba Chiefdom to herald electricity supply in Moyamba Town.

[femaleinafrica]

Female in Sierra Leone Moyamba Branch Pioneer and Principal of Harford School for Girls, in a radio discussion on equality. #EachForEqual https://www.instagram.com/p/B9nYN0wpwC6/?igshid=1nlbsy613p22o