Photographs © Tim Hamill
MAMA, BUSHCOW MASK 9, 16.75", $300, SOLD
These headdresses, or horizontal helmet masks, are abstract representations
of the bushcow and emphasize aggressive power. They are worn with a thick
costume of fiber. The Mama live along the Benue River in eastern Nigeria.
Despite its appearance and patina, this Mama mask shows no evidence of age
or use and was probably made to be sold.