Mukuyé mask, Punu, Gabon. - Lot 271

Mukuyé mask, Punu, Gabon. Black lacquered wood Accents, restoration Height: 26 cm This very old and beautiful mask features a face of great finesse, with outstretched eyes and an aquiline nose. It wears a headdress with three combed buns covered with a thick black patina. The collar used to attach the headdress has retained a few thin wooden pegs. The vast majority of masks from the Punu area are coated in white, made from kaolin. According to Charlotte Grand-Dufay and Louis Perrois (Punu, 5 continents 2008), black Punu represent only 8% of the corpus studied. According to the information gathered by the authors, they are representations of vigilante spirits. At the Vérité sale in June 2006, this rare object far exceeded its estimate. Experts: Christine Valluet and Judith Schoffel de Fabry. Mask on view at 14 Rue Guénégaud - 75006 Paris - Tel 01.43.26.83.38