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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;2manybooks, post: 4147358, member: 8267&quot;]The style is consistent with masks from the northeastern region of Cameroon known as the &quot;Grasslands&quot;. Several ethnic groups there share artistic styles, and it is often difficult to distinguish between them, the Bamum/Bamun and Bamileke being predominate. This type of brass/bronze mask is larger than those used as &quot;hip masks&quot;, and I cannot find information as to how, or if, they were used in the originating culture or if they were made for sale. They essentially copy forms made in wood. </p><p><br /></p><p>The wooden masks are &quot;usually worn during state ceremonies such as the funeral of an important dignitary, or during annual festivities&quot;, and often take the form of &quot;helmet masks&quot;, which are worn on top of the head rather than over the face. Among the types of coiffures represented in the wooden masks is a type of openwork with spider motifs, &quot;symbolizing ancestral wisdom&quot;. </p><p><i>Bacquart, Jean-Baptiste: The Tribal Arts of Africa. Thames &amp; Hudson, 1998.</i></p><p><br /></p><p>Here are 2 brass/bronze masks from the American Museum of Natural History, but they have little information on their history or use:</p><p><img src="https://anthro.amnh.org/images/preview/901/901_7488.jpg" class="bbCodeImage wysiwygImage" alt="" unselectable="on" /></p><p><a href="https://anthro.amnh.org/anthropology/databases/common/image_dup.cfm?catno=90%2E1%2F%207488" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://anthro.amnh.org/anthropology/databases/common/image_dup.cfm?catno=90%2E1%2F%207488" rel="nofollow">https://anthro.amnh.org/anthropology/databases/common/image_dup.cfm?catno=90.1/ 7488</a></p><p><br /></p><p><img src="https://anthro.amnh.org/images/preview/902/902_5007.jpg" class="bbCodeImage wysiwygImage" alt="" unselectable="on" /></p><p><a href="https://anthro.amnh.org/anthropology/databases/common/image_dup.cfm?catno=90%2E2%2F%205007" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://anthro.amnh.org/anthropology/databases/common/image_dup.cfm?catno=90%2E2%2F%205007" rel="nofollow">https://anthro.amnh.org/anthropology/databases/common/image_dup.cfm?catno=90.2/ 5007</a>[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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