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Source Description
Among the Bwa people, masks with human, animal, and fantastic traits typically represent protective bush spirits. This mask’s horns and muzzle identify it as a bush buffalo. Masked dancers appear during the dry season for initiations, funerals of elders, market days, harvest celebrations, and annual renewal rituals to protect the well-being of the community.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
144495
label
Buffalo Mask
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
144495
contentType
object
title
Buffalo Mask
description
Among the Bwa people, masks with human, animal, and fantastic traits typically represent protective bush spirits. This mask’s horns and muzzle identify it as a bush buffalo. Masked dancers appear during the dry season for initiations, funerals of elders, market days, harvest celebrations, and annual renewal rituals to protect the well-being of the community.
date
early to mid-1900s
citation
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
genreSpecific
Mask
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Overall: 69.8 cm (27 1/2 in.)
cul
Africa, West Africa, Burkina Faso, possibly Bwa-style maker
accession
1969.2
Source extras
tec
Wood, plant fibers, paint, and iron
tombstone
Buffalo Mask, early to mid-1900s. Africa, West Africa, Burkina Faso, possibly Bwa-style maker. Wood, plant fibers, paint, and iron; overall: 69.8 cm (27 1/2 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of Katherine C. White, 1969.2
collection
African Art
formerAccessionNumbers
933.68
didYouKnow
Once broken, the right horn of this mask was repaired; this indicates that it was valued.
citations
citation
Fagg, William. <em>African Tribal Images: the Katherine White Reswick Collection</em>. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1968.
page_number
Reproduced: cat. no. 31
citation
Lee, Sherman E. “The Year in Review for 1969.” <em>The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art</em> 57, no. 1 (January 1970): 2–50.
page_number
Reproduced: p. 41, fig. 128; mentioned: p. 147
citation
The Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978</em>. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978.
page_number
Reproduced: p. 411
citation
Kathman, Barbara A. <em>A Cleveland Bestiary</em>. Cleveland, OH; Cleveland Museum of Art, 1981.
page_number
Mentioned: p. 16, p. 60; Reproduced: p. 17
citation
Henry John Drewal. <em>African Art: A Brief Guide to the Collection : the Cleveland Museum of Art</em>. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1989.
page_number
fig. 17
citation
Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art</em>. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1991.
page_number
p. 153
citation
Connell, Timothy C., and Jackson J. Spielvogel. <em>World Art Transparencies</em>. Cincinnati: West Educational Pub, 1998.
page_number
Acetate 43
citation
May, Sally Ruth, Jane Takac, and Barbara J. Bradley. <em>Knockouts: A Pocket Guide</em>. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2001.
page_number
Mentioned and Reproduced: pp.67-8. no. 70; listed: p. 118.
citation
Donley, Gregory M., "A New Face for African Art", Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>Cleveland Art: The Cleveland Museum of Art Members Magazine</em>. Vol. 42 no. 04, April 2002
page_number
Mentioned & reproduced: p. 6-7
citation
Petridis, Constantijn. <em>South of the Sahara: selected works of African art. </em>Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2003.
page_number
Reproduced: cat. 5, p. 40 - 41
citation
Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>Cleveland Art: The Cleveland Museum of Art Members Magazine</em>. Vol. 43 no. 09, November 2003
page_number
Reproduced: cover
citation
Petridis, Constantine. "A New Installation for African Art in Cleveland." <em>Tribal: the Magaine of Tribal Art</em>. 9 (3) no. 36 (Autumn-Winter 2004): 68-73.
citation
Franklin, David and C. Griffith Mann. <em>Treasures from the Cleveland Museum of Art</em>. Cleveland, OH: Cleveland Museum of Art; London, Scala Publishers Ltd, 2012.
page_number
pp. 288-9.
citation
Basquiat, Jean-Michel, Sam Keller, and Iris Hasler. Basquiat: The Modena Paintings.Berlin : Hatje Cantz ; Riehen/Basel : Fondation Beyeler, 2023.
page_number
Mentioned and reproduced: p. 35, fig. 2
creditline
Gift of Katherine C. White
updatedAt
2026-05-29 07:25:21.180000
sourceId
144495
dept
African Art
coll
African Art
med
Wood, plant fibers, paint, and iron
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
e289c08e21745e78