Ancient African Masks

     The art of ancient Africa is unlike any art I have ever seen. Most creations were built towards the sacred king of the time. Both the depiction of the sacred king from the Ile-Ife period and the ivory belt buck of the Benin period, praise the sacred god. The left most image shows a modern African king in the center. There is also what seems to be a tribal chief on his right who is wearing a massive headdress.. You can that the king is wearing sacred garments affiliated with their religion and with their culture. However, what I found interesting is the similarity with his mask and the belt buck mask. Both masks have beading all along the head, however the belt is limited to the upper head due to its small size. The pupils in the eyes of both masks are darkened and carved into to create the image of depth in space in the eye. This seems to be a reoccurring theme throughout face sculpting in ancient Africa. There was clear emphasis and intent by the ancient artists to deeply define the eyes so that they stick out. Also, in both images, there seems to be a stress on three main facial features: the nose, the mouth, and the eyes. It is clear that the artists understood facial anatomy well enough to create amazingly realistic features. Their is a clear arch about the mouth. The 3-D extent of the lips coming out is different from other ancient artworks that create very flat lips with little form. The exaggerated nostrils of the nose shows the pure form of human features. The slight exaggerations that some people may miss, can lead us to better understand how much these ancient people knew about the human body. The enlarged overlapping eyelids create a quarter-dome over the eyes. There was clear intentions on creating this overlap to show movement in the eyelids. The fact that the ancient belt buckle can compare to a modern mask is truly remarkable.

     The purpose of the ancient and modern masks revolve around religion. A man would head to an African jungle with an ax. The man would chop once at the true, and then proceed to suck some sap from the tree, to create a bond with this tree. The Africans believe that a powerful spirit dwells in each tree and so the tree was majestic. Then the man would leave the tree for about a week to give the spirit time to find another home. Even though the spirit was gone. the tree remained powerful. Then the man returns and cuts down the tree and harvests it's wood. The wood is then given to a skilled carver who must follow specified rights. The carver could make the wood into a wearable mask, or into small belt buckles or parts of necklaces.  The mask must also be a typical representation of the ethnic group. After carving, the mask is brought to a wizard who puts it through a consecration ceremony. After the consecration, it was finally able to be used in religious ceremonies. These masks would represent the spirits of nature or the spirits of the dead. These masks were seen as protection against witchcraft during ceremonies or festivities. In modern times, they are seen as art collectibles. Their simplicity draws westerners in and intrigues them. The masks of Ancient Africa are truly special in their regards to the people.

     Even in modern times, the masks of Africa show roots of the Ancient masks. These masks will continue to be a part of African culture for centuries to come, and they will live in the nature of the people.

Benin Art

     The culture of Benin dates all the way back to before 1400 and it still survives today. Its origins started in the 13th century just west of the lower Niger River. However, its true power and extent came about in the 15th and 16th centuries. The culture then started a slow decline and the Benin palace was sacked by the British in 1897. However, the culture lives on in modern times, and the king still lives in the palace.

Benin belt buckle mask which stands 9 3/8" high.

     Ivory was very popular in creating objects for the king. Ivory was seen as very valuable and precious, and so most of these objects were small in size. For example, The Ivory belt mask of a Queen Mother (seen
lower left) is under 10 inches in height. Despite its small size, it has incredible detailing. The detailing of the curvature of the facial features such as the rounded nose and arched lips adds to the realism of the piece. Personally, I believe that the cracks in the ivory add depth to the lips. Our lips are cracked, and the cracking in the ivory itself adds to this effect. There are also miniature figures surrounding the top of the head on what may be a headdress and the collar. They are each individually engraved and outlined in a specific form. They seem to be some sort of mystical creatures or spirits. The headdress has specific beads which would have been held tightly together to hold the headdress intact. The detailing done on each micro bead is astounding. This piece of work is very small as previously stated, and so carving minuscule details would have required extreme focus and perseverance.  Another aspect of the face that caught my eye, was the eyes themselves. This figure has extremely defined eyeballs and eyelids. The darkness of the pupil adds to the surrounding effect of the overcast eyelids. This piece is a true combination of masterful form and technique with desire to create the best images for the king.

     Another feature of Benin culture was their centrality of the sacred oba which is shown in the cast-brass shrine called an ikegobo. This piece shows compositions of hierarchy centered on the central image of the king who is portrayed as the largest figure. To his sides are smaller members of the court who were below him and in front of the king are 2 leopards. These were animals that would be sacrificed by the sacred king to symbolize his power over all creature. This piece is in a cylindrical shape and it is a sculpture in the round. There is a scene occurring on the bottom ring of the cylinder, in which we can see the portrayal of more leopards below the hands of the king. In the center ring the king is seen in the middle among inferior members of the court. They are depicted as smaller, and weaker. On the top ring are the 3-D images of the king, 2 lesser court members, and a pair of leopards. The fact that the king is on the top with men and animals below him, symbolizes his power over man and beast.
 
     The extreme details on sculptures and creations in the times of Benin is truly remarkable. The small ivory mask covered with immense detailing and figuring, and the ikegobo combine Benin ideals and put them into artwork. Benin was truly a time of prosperity in Africa in which artists were able to great magnificent works.