Kanaga mask
The Kanaga mask is a mask of the Dogon of Mali traditionally worn by members of the male Awa Society during a ceremony called the dama. The dama is performed, months or even years after a person has died, in order to send their soul to the world of the dead. The Kanaga mask is one of the most popular of the many types of masks used during a dama; in 1935, French anthropologist Marcel Griaule, counted 29 out of 74 masks at one such ceremony as being of the Kanaga type.
Description
The base wooden mask is worn on the face and is topped with a tall, two-barred cross, with the wooden crossbars being of equal length The lower of the two has its ends pointing down, while the upper has its ends pointing up. The entire mask can be over tall; the dimensions of one example are 43 1/16 × 24 3/8 × 6 15/16 inches.The shape of the mask may represent various animal subjects: the kommolo tebu, the lizard, the iguana, the barâmkamza dullogu, the hand of God or the female spirit of the trees. The mask is presented in male and female forms, the male version being the most numerous.