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Source Description
This was used in masked performances of the Agrinya society, a powerful guild formerly restricted to men who had killed an elephant, lion, or man. The white pigment connotes the realm of the ancestors, while the aggressive expression of the face seems to suggest the courage of Agrinya society members.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
141206
label
Headdress
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
141206
contentType
object
title
Headdress
description
This was used in masked performances of the Agrinya society, a powerful guild formerly restricted to men who had killed an elephant, lion, or man. The white pigment connotes the realm of the ancestors, while the aggressive expression of the face seems to suggest the courage of Agrinya society members.
date
early 1900s
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
genreSpecific
Mask
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Overall: 20.4 x 17.8 x 16.2 cm (8 1/16 x 7 x 6 3/8 in.)
cul
Africa, West Africa, Nigeria, Idoma-style carver
accession
1964.444
Source extras
tec
Wood, human hair, paint, and possibly kaolin
tombstone
Headdress, early 1900s. Africa, West Africa, Nigeria, Idoma-style carver. Wood, human hair, paint, and possibly kaolin; overall: 20.4 x 17.8 x 16.2 cm (8 1/16 x 7 x 6 3/8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, James Albert and Mary Gardiner Ford Memorial Fund, 1964.444
collection
African Art
didYouKnow
Holes in the neck once attached a flat raffia disk or strings for wearing the headdress-type mask on top of the head.
creditline
James Albert and Mary Gardiner Ford Memorial Fund
updatedAt
2026-05-29 07:15:32.008000
sourceId
141206
dept
African Art
coll
African Art
med
Wood, human hair, paint, and possibly kaolin
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
a52ab2cb6b8339f8