unknown Master of BAMANA
Mali
Wood & metal sheet, beads, H 119 cm & 117 cm / 46.9 in. & 46.1 in.
Prov.: Collection Karl William Heiss, coll. 2009
The 'Tjiwara' sculptures are amongst the best known African art objects; no fewer than 538 different types and forms have been identified so far. The masks always appear in male-female pairs, symbolizing the sun (male) and the earth (female) and their significance for human life.
The fine structures of these masks indicate the origin from the Ségou region.