Helmet mask for the Sande society (ndoli jowei)
This Sande society mask is represents a perfectly beautiful, well-behaved young woman. The dark, smooth surface is punctuated by a bright star on the forehead. The downcast eyes and resolutely closed lips reflect the expectations for well-brought-up young women, who are told to keep their own council and not to meet the eyes of elders, strangers, or men, as a sign of respect. The mask’s smooth, lustrous surface has been oiled and evokes the perfect glowing skin of a teenage girl. The folds around the neck likewise point to an ideal beauty: a woman who is well fed but not heavy, and who takes care with her appearance.
The elaborate hairstyle is too complex for everyday wear for all but the wealthiest of women. All women, however, are entitled to a time-consuming hairstyle on the day that they are “pulled,” or graduate, from the Sande society. Sande is an organization that trains girls to become women. Outside of the bounds of town to allow for privacy, older women circumcise girls to mark their entry into womanhood and teach them important skills for their future lives as wives and mothers—sex education, basic midwife skills, and how to get along with their future mother-in-law. Girls also learn the secrets of Sande: dances, songs, and advice known only to the women of a community. For example, the reptile on the top of this mask may refer to an aphorism or song known in the community where the mask was commissioned.
Sande society masks are the only wooden masks in Sub-Saharan Africa made for and performed by women. A woman who has attained a certain level in Sande may commission a mask, usually after she has been visited by a spirit in a dream. The masks are used in performances before and after initiation, when a woman dies in childbirth, or at women’s funerals. Women in a given community compete with each other in performance, aiming to be judged the best dancer or to have the best mask. The ornate carving, bright metal accents, and intriguing animals on this mask likely made it a crowd favorite.
