The mask was originally part of a male-female pairing that danced at annual harvest festivals and funerals in praise of the community's ancestors. The tall cap represented indicates it is a male character symbolizing the founding ancestor of the Tikar royal lineage. The mask, designed to be worn on top of a dancer's head, still retains parts of the raffia basketry frame used to secure the mask to the wearer and from which fabric was suspended to hide the dancer's face. Dating to the 19th Century, it left Africa in the early 20th Century and then passed between several collections in the United Kingdom and United States before coming to Emory.
- Title: Crest Mask
- Location: Africa, Cameroon
- Physical Dimensions: 24 x 9 x 8 in. (61 x 22.9 x 20.3 cm)
- Provenance: Ex Peter Wengraf, England. Ex coll. Charles Davis, United States, from late 1970s-early 1980s. Purchased by MCCM from North Carolina art market.
- Subject Keywords: Ceremonial costume, effigy, mask
- Rights: © Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University. Photo by Bruce M. White
- External Link: https://collections.carlos.emory.edu/objects/28043/
- Art Movement: Tikar
- Dates: late 19th Century
- Classification: African Art
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