Zoomorphic Komo Society Mask with Feathers

Origin: Bambarra Tribe, Mali
Composition: wood, feathers, cotton textile, cowrie shells, natural materials

Bambarra Tribe Komo masks and headdresses are of elongated animal head forms decorated with actual antelope horns, porcupine quills, bird skulls, feathers and other objects as vessels of power. The headdresses are worn horizontally. The sacrificial material seen in the encrustation on the surfaces of these headdresses (also known as a helmet masks) are an indication of their connection with one of the three main Bamana power societies: Komo, Kono and Nama. These headdress are typical of the Komo society, which functions as the custodian of tradition and is concerned with all aspects of community life, agriculture, judicial processes, and passage rites.

The Komo is a secret power association of priests, knowledgeable elders, and blacksmiths that forms the central Bambarra social institution. Members of the blacksmith clan are born into the Komo society because of their ability to employ the forbidden power of fire to transform matter from one form into another. Blacksmiths of the Komo society wear the society headdress or komo-kun during a dance to invoke nyama, the force that activates the universe. (From an article in African Arts, Winter, 2001 by Jean-Paul Colleyn, Laurie Ann Farrell).

This rare piece was purchased in 2005 in the Marche’ du Rose in Mali from a Bambarra tribe dealer. It was the only piece the dealer was selling, and is said to have been carved in the early 1950s. An important note: this mask should be taken seriously and while certainly a beautiful work of art, its cultural significance as a power piece should not be discounted— quills and feathers should be noted.