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THBNigerian Igbo Afkipo Painted Wood Mask - Mmaji
Lot 52c
About Seller
Artemis Fine Arts
686 S Taylor Ave, Ste 106
Louisville, CO 80027
United States
Selling antiquities, ancient and ethnographic art online since 1993, Artemis Gallery specializes in Classical Antiquities (Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Near Eastern), Asian, Pre-Columbian, African / Tribal / Oceanographic art. Our extensive inventory includes pottery, stone, metal, wood, glass and textil...Read more
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Live Auction in Progress ... Currently on Lot Estimate:
$800 - $1,500
Starting Bid
$400
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About Auction
Live
By Artemis Fine Arts
Aug 22, 2025
Set Reminder
2025-08-22 10:00:00
2025-08-22 10:00:00
America/New_York
Bidsquare
Bidsquare : Indigenous Art - Ralph T. Coe Center, Santa Fe, NM
https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/artemis-gallery/indigenous-art---ralph-t-coe-center-santa-fe-nm-20324
Featuring works of art from the Ralph T. Coe Center for the Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico, a non-profit focused on promoting Indigenous Arts globally. All proceeds from the sale of these items will support future grants to Rehoming Program participants. Artemis Fine Arts info@artemisfinearts.com
Featuring works of art from the Ralph T. Coe Center for the Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico, a non-profit focused on promoting Indigenous Arts globally. All proceeds from the sale of these items will support future grants to Rehoming Program participants. Artemis Fine Arts info@artemisfinearts.com
View Full Catalog (452)
- Lot Description
West Africa, southeastern Nigeria, Igbo people, Afkipo (also known as Ehugbo) subgroup, ca. early to mid-20th century CE. A striking early to mid 20th century Igbo Afikpo Mmaji mask, carved from a single piece of wood and crowned with the distinctive machete-like projection from which the mask type takes its name. "Mma Ji" translates to "knife-yam," a reference to the yam-cutting blade whose silhouette dominates the design. The face is an oval form with almond-shaped eye openings, framed by a plaited fiber border, and painted in bold fields of yellow and black, the pigments softened with age. The towering superstructure, its surface weathered to a pale chalky white, bears a painted "X" near the apex and extends dramatically above the forehead, terminating in a subtly curved tip with traces of black pigment. Size: 7.5" L x 5.2" W x 17.5" H (19 cm x 13.2 cm x 44.4 cm)
Mmaji masks are the most characteristic of the Afikpo repertoire and were worn by older boys during Okumkpa performances, theatrical events staged after the Dry Season Festival. These lively productions could involve as many as a hundred masked performers - men and boys - moving in choreographed dances, singing, and enacting satirical skits that lampooned social behavior and offered pointed commentary on community life. Once a performer donned the mask, he was transformed from a man into a spirit (mma), a manifestation associated with a deity of the egbele secret society. The spirit itself was understood to remain in the sacred bush, with the mask serving as a potent but transient embodiment during the performance.
Beautifully balanced between abstraction and naturalism, this example retains a strong presence - its weathered patina, flaking pigments, and frayed fiber bindings all testifying to its ceremonial use and age. A superb work of Afikpo carving, it stands as both an artwork and an anthropological record of performance, satire, and the enduring dialogue between community and spirit.
Provenance: Ralph T. Coe Center for the Arts, Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA, acquired in 2010 via descent; ex-private Ralph T. Coe, Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA
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#196220Missing bottom rung and loss to tip of knife. Some nicks, chips, and abrasions as shown, as well as fraying to fiber cords. Good remaining pigments.Condition
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