Chokwe Pwo Mask: Fertility Symbol from Angola

A Chokwe mask, Angola, late 20th century. This stunning Pwo (face mask) is an idealised representation of a Chokwe woman and believed to spread fertility wherever it is worn. The mask is carved from a single piece of wood with visible chisel marks to the reverse. It features a carved head dress, slit eyeholes, a delicate nose, an open mouth, and facial scarifications. Woven fibre is attached to the mask and worn over the wearer's head. Some areas have been coloured with red and ochre pigments, namely around the eyes, ears, and parts of the headdress. Some pigment has worn away, but otherwise this piece shows little deterioration with highly-polished areas of smooth wood. On custom wooden stand. Mask height 29 cm, width 16 cm, depth 14 cm, on stand height 37 cm. Provenance: Provenance: Lim-Strutt collection, Aotearoa. Previously of the Zoumana Traore collection, New York