This Gelede mask has been vetted as authentic, made for tribal use.
There is a small crack (now stable) on the front of the middle ring. ( See second and third images above.)
Gelede, a male association, uses the aesthetic power of sculpture, costume, song and dance to placate and please women, who have special spiritual power. Often with elaborate superstructures, the headdresses appear as identical pairs in the dances.
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