Dugn'be (ox) mask

Label TextYoung men of the canhoca, an age grade for 12- to 17-year-olds, are occasionally be impetuous and irresponsible. The dugn'be mask recognizes this phase of childhood. On hands and knees in portrayal of an ox, the masquerader is tethered by a cord passing through the nostrils. An adult may provoke the ox and allow it to rebel. Eventually, though, the masquerader calms down and demonstrates how, like the ox, the young man is beginning to master his strength.

Object number81.17.178

Provenance[Galerie Majestic, Paris, France]; purchased from gallery by Katherine White (1929-1980), Seattle, Washington, 1972; bequeathed to Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, Washington, 1981

Exhibition HistoryLos Angeles, California, Frederick S. Wight Art Gallery, University of California, African Art in Motion: Icon and Act, Jan. 20 - Mar. 17, 1974 (Washington, D.C., National Gallery of Art, May 5 - Sept. 22, 1974). Text by Robert Farris Thompson. No cat. no., pp. 133-4, reproduced pl. 170 (as bull mask). Seattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, Selections from The Katherine White Collection, Mar. 12 - Aug. 8, 1987.

Credit LineGift of Katherine White and the Boeing Company

Dimensions19 3/4 x 22 5/8 x 14 5/8 in. (50.2 x 57.5 x 37.1 cm)

MediumWood, ox horns, leather, and glass