ID: 700000126 Page link: http://vocab.getty.edu/page/cona/700000126	Record Type: Movable Work
Images: 1

Face Mask (Pwo) (pwo mask; Chokwe artist; Early 20th century; National Museum of African Art (Washington, DC, United State...; 85-15-20)

Note: This mask represents a beautiful young woman adorned with tattoos, earrings and an elaborate coiffure. The original Chokwe name (pwo) referred to an adult woman who had given birth. The more recent name, mwana pwo, probably adopted under European influence, emphasizes youthful, feminine beauty. The artist carved this mask with very delicate, even, thin walls from the wood of Alstonia (probably A. congensis). The surface is a rich, reddish brown color, probably obtained from a mixture of red clay and oil, and has a beautiful patina, a sign of long use. The half-closed eyes placed in large, concave sockets are covered with white clay (kaolin). The eyes, slender nose, elliptical mouth and hemispherical ears are delicately carved on a face delineated by a softly modeled forehead and concave chin. The major components of the fiber coiffure are a braided headband and a heavy fringe at the rear. Chokwe women typically wore a hairstyle entirely coated with red earth and known as tota. Description: Dark brown oval shaped female face mask with a broad forehead. The eyes are horizontal slits placed within large eye sockets coated with white pigment, the nose is long with pierced nostrils and the mouth is long and cut horizontally to form the lips. The back of the head is covered with a knotted, corded fiber coiffure.

Titles:

Face Mask (Pwo) (preferred,C,U,RP,English-P,U,U)

Mask (Pwo) (C,U,English,U,U)

Catalog Level: item

Work Types:

pwo mask [300404773] (preferred)

..... (Objects Facet, Furnishings and Equipment (hierarchy name), Costume (hierarchy name), costume (mode of fashion), <costume by function>, masks (costume), ceremonial masks)

mask (costume) [300138758]

..... (Objects Facet, Furnishings and Equipment (hierarchy name), Costume (hierarchy name), costume (mode of fashion), <costume by function>)

Classifications:

sculptures (preferred)

African art

costume / clothing

Creation Date: Early 20th century

Creator Display:

Chokwe artist [preferred,VP]

artist unknown Chokwe (Chokwe cultural designation) [500203107]

Locations:

Current: National Museum of African Art (Washington, DC, United States) [500311458] Smithsonian Institution, Corporate Bodies (Corp. Body)

Repository Numbers: 85-15-20

Credit Line: Museum purchase

Creation: Angola [1000149] Africa (continent), World (facet) (Geographic)

Discovery: Congo, République Démocratique du [1000159] Africa (continent), World (facet) (Geographic)

Display Materials: Wood, plant fiber, pigment, copper alloy

	wood (plant material) [300011914]
	.......(Materials Facet, Materials (hierarchy name), materials (substances), <materials by origin>, biological material, plant material, <wood and wood by product>)

	raffia (fiber) [300014051]
	.......(Materials Facet, Materials (hierarchy name), materials (substances), <materials by form>, <materials by physical form>, <fiber and fiber by product>, fiber, natural fiber, plant fiber)

	metal [300010900]
	.......(Materials Facet, Materials (hierarchy name), materials (substances), <materials by composition>, inorganic material)

	kaolin [300010445]
	.......(Materials Facet, Materials (hierarchy name), materials (substances), <materials by composition>, inorganic material, clay, <clay by composition or origin>)

	carving (processes) [300053149]
	.......(Activities Facet, Processes and Techniques (hierarchy name), <processes and techniques by specific type>, <subtractive processes and techniques>, <carving and carving techniques>)

	tying [300053026]
	.......(Activities Facet, Processes and Techniques (hierarchy name), <processes and techniques by specific type>, <additive and joining processes and techniques>, assembling (additive and joining process))

	gluing [300053012]
	.......(Activities Facet, Processes and Techniques (hierarchy name), <processes and techniques by specific type>, <additive and joining processes and techniques>, adhesion)

	copper alloy [300010942]
	.......(Materials Facet, Materials (hierarchy name), materials (substances), <materials by composition>, inorganic material, metal, <metal by composition or origin>, nonferrous metal, <copper and copper alloy>)

	Alstonia congensis (species) [300417449]
	.......(Agents Facet, Living Organisms (hierarchy name), living organisms (entities), Eukaryota (domain), Plantae (kingdom), Angiospermae (division), Magnoliopsida (class), Rosanae (superorder), Gentianales (order), Apocynaceae (family), Alstonia (genus))

Dimensions: 39.1 x 21.3 x 23.5 cm (15 3/8 x 8 3/8 x 9 1/4 in.)

Cultures:

African (preferred)

Style/Period/Group/Movement:

	Muzamba [300266702] (preferred,N/A)
	.....(Styles and Periods Facet, Styles and Periods (hierarchy name), <styles| periods| and cultures by region>, African (general| continental cultures), <African by cultural or regional designation>, Central African (cultural or regional style), <Southwestern Democratic Republic of Congo and Angola styles>)

General Subject:

religion and mythology (preferred)

apparel

human figures

advertising and commercial

ceremonial objects

Specific Subjects:

	face (animal component) [300251798]
	.....(Objects Facet, Components (hierarchy name), components (objects parts), <components by specific context>, biological components, animal components) (AAT)

	human females [300025943]
	.....(Agents Facet, People (hierarchy name), people (agents), <people by gender or sex>) (AAT)

Provenance: Private collection, Brussels Galerie Dierickx, Brussels, 1969 Emile M. Deletaille, Brussels, 1969 to 1985

List/Hierarchical Position:

..... Movable Works

.......... Movable Works by class: decorative and utilitarian works

Sources and Contributors:
Face Mask (Pwo)	........ [VP]
	........ National Museum of African Art [online] (1999-) accessed 7 February 2018
Mask (Pwo)	........ [VP]
	........ National Museum of African Art [online] (1999-)

Subject: ....... [VP]

Note:
English	..... [VP]
	..... National Museum of African Art [online] (1999-) accessed 7 February 2018