Mambila Suaga Helmet Crest, Cameroon, Nigeria, African Mask.

$220.00 Buy It Now or Best Offer, Click to see shipping cost, 30-Day Returns, eBay Money Back Guarantee
Seller: joburger63 ✉️ (1,508) 100%, Location: Marlo, AU, Ships to: WORLDWIDE, Item: 134134731809 Mambila Suaga Helmet Crest, Cameroon, Nigeria, African Mask.. Item: Mambila Suaga Helmet Crest.  Specifications: 48 x 15.5 x 19.5 cm Origin: Nigeria  (see cultural and contextual notes below)  Medium: Timber Carving & Pigment Traces. Note: Sale does not include display stand. . Shipping   African Origins ship dozens of international orders every week to every corner of the globe. We generally use Australia Post, a reliable, economic and fast service which also features online tracking. For multiple orders weighing over five kilograms we ship or via International Air Courier which also features online tracking. Please feel free to contact us directly with your country and zip code if you have any questions or special requirements regarding shipping or wish to obtain a quote for shipping to your area. We are happy to calculate combined postage quotes for multiple items.     Returns African Origins  sells tribal objects which have been used, in some cases, for many, many years. We ask that you carefully study the photographs relating to each object prior to committing to purchase. In the event that you are unhappy with your purchase for any reason, we accept refunds within seven days of purchase. We offer a full refund or a credit note valid for twelve months, which ever you prefer. Return postage is paid by the purchaser in all cases.     About African Origins   African Origins has been trading online since 2007. We are constantly on the look out for interesting objects to add to our collection.  Our tribal collection is sourced from tribal dealers,auction houses, private collections the world over and also collected in the field.. Where possible, we will specify the provenance of important individual tribal objects.   Feedback   The success of African Origins depends on positive feedback. If you are happy with your purchase, please leave positive feedback and we will do the same for you. If you are not happy, please contact us first before leaving negative feedback and we will do all within our power to rectify the problem.

The 25,000 Mambila, farmers and stockbreeders, occupy the region bordering Cameroon and Nigeria, to the north of Grassland. Land, every family’s property, is distributed by the group’s chief. The primary cereal crops include sorghum, rice, and millet. They also grow bananas, yams, maize, manioc, peppers, peanuts, sweet potatoes, and tobacco. They acquired the practice of milking cattle from the Fulani and also use manure from the cattle as fertilizer. Goats, chickens, dogs, and sheep are raised for meat. Some hunting and fishing is done, but neither contribute significantly to the daily economy. Labor is divided between men and women, and children begin to work at the age of twelve.

A society of mutual assistance, the kurum, participates in clearing land, harvesting, and building houses and facilitates social contacts during celebrations and dances. The men are in charge of weaving cotton, metal- and woodworking, and braiding fiber. Merchants and blacksmiths are separated from the rest of the community. The trade is passed from father to son. They practice the ancestor cult and agrarian rites. The Mambila only worshipped family ancestors. According to their beliefs, at one’s death the ancestors take away the soul of the deceased during the night. The chiefs of the lineage were buried in granaries, for they are representative of prosperity and life, just as the grains of millet.

 

Mambila art centers upon an association called suaga. It is primarily concerned with justice and supernatural cleansing within the community. The Mambila produced a considerable number of figures that are characterized by a heart-shaped face; pigments are often applied later. Mambila figures embody ancestors who, according to their beliefs, are responsible for the clan's wealth. The figures appear with bent legs and typical enlarged head outlined in wooden pegs. Mambila also make highly stylized animal masks. Masks and statues were kept hidden from the eyes of women in a net hung on the inside of a hut that was on stilts; it was guarded by the head of the family. The front wall of the hut was decorated with two figures, male on the right and female on the left, crowned by a rainbow and framed by the sun and the moon. Dancers celebrating the beginning and end of the agricultural cycle are led by a tribesman wearing a cephalomorphic helmet mask. He is often followed by a retinue of assistants wearing secondary masks in the shape or stylized animal heads, usually dog’s or crow’s. In general, women are excluded from these masquerades, both as actors and as spectators. Women dressed in rags and vegetation present their own version of the masquerade at a different time and place.

 

 

Please note that unless specified otherwise, no item from the African Origins shop comes together with a display stand. This includes objects that have a display stand visible in the images that accompany the listing.
  • Condition: Used
  • Region of Origin: African
  • Tribe: Mambilla
  • category: African Mask
  • Region: Nigeria
  • Product Type: African Tribal Art

PicClick Insights - Mambila Suaga Helmet Crest, Cameroon, Nigeria, African Mask. PicClick Exclusive

  •  Popularity - 5 watchers, 0.0 new watchers per day, 668 days for sale on eBay. Super high amount watching. 0 sold, 1 available.
  •  Best Price -
  •  Seller - 1,508+ items sold. 0% negative feedback. Great seller with very good positive feedback and over 50 ratings.

People Also Loved PicClick Exclusive