Vol. I · The open image paperWinnipeg · Musée sans mursRecovered · Remembered · Returned
Cleveland Museum of Art148746portrait1900sCC0cma african-global-heritage symbols-patterns african global heritage symbols patterns mask textile ethnography folk art patchwork red orange brown beige fabric handmade ritual ancestor vintage worn cultural art primitive traditional egúngún masquerade dance costume1900s Africa, West Africa, Nigeria, Yorùbá-style maker cotton, velvet, flannel, dye, faux fur, leather, cowrie shells Mask African DecorativeAfrican & Global Heritage Symbols & Ornament
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Egúngún Masquerade Dance Costume (1900s). Gift of Katherine C. White Rights: CC0. https://clevelandart.org/art/1976.187
Vault de Lupin makes the source signal legible; it does not provide legal advice or replace the institution’s current rights statement.
From the museum record
Swirling into motion, egúngún masquerade costumes appear during annual festivities to bless the community. Manifesting ancestral spirits, they serve as a bridge between the living and the otherworld. The fabric panels create a dwelling place for ancestral spirits. Arranged and selected according to Yorùbá design sense (ojú-ọnà), this mask incorporates hundreds of African, Asian, and European fabrics. These include imported damasks, velvets, faux furs, and embroideries, as well as local indigo-dyed cottons.
Lupin’s visual index
A heavily patched and embellished African mask hangs vertically against a neutral background, showcasing intricate textile details and worn materials.
Machine-assisted description · useful for discovery, not scholarship.
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