ITURI MASK 9, DRC

People, including the Mbuti and Ndaka, of the Ituri rain forest use masks representing ancestor spirits in elaborate initiation ceremonies. The masks utilize painted design elements on their surfaces that have long been associated with the better-known painted bark-cloth textiles of the Mbuti. A single pattern is usually repeated over the entire surface. Utilized in the context of a boy's initiation, these powerful masks are at once attractive and aggressive.

The measurements are the height of the mask, then the height of the mask plus raffia, the width of the mask, then the width plus raffia.