Mbunda (Bunda, Mambunda), Angola and Zambia

Circumcision Mask. The Mbunda people settled mostly in western Zambia, but live also in Angola. The Mbunda masks were worn with an elaborated costume knitted from thread made from the bark of the mushamba tree and skirts of grasses and palm leaves. In total there are twenty-two masquerade characters of the Mbunda. The dancer with such a mask possibly represented a hunter who used bows and arrows, an important character in the Makisi masquerade performed by the Mbunda during the second phase of circumcision rites, which involved preparations for the return to the village of the initiates, no longer as boys but as men. They also perform in the villages, where they dance to the accompaniment of songs sung by male and female onlookers.

Material: wood and textile

Size: H. 10”, W. 7”, D. 4 ½”

Price: $170 + $30 (S&H)                                [#U9M9M295]