Old Fishing/Farming Mask

Origin: Warka (Marka) Tribe, Mali
Composition: wood

The Warka (also called Marka) are a subgroup of the Bambarra, and live throughout Mali and Burkina Faso. Their masks are very unique and recognizable for their long faces, pointed chins, and round eyes. Warka masks are very similar to Bambarra masks in style, yet are distinguished either by their metal plating or heavy facial scarification. Warka masks are often decorated with colorful tassels representing piercings, which, along with the facial scarifications, symbolize feminine beauty.

The Warka perform ceremonies devoted to fishing and farming, and their stylized masks would be danced to invoke the spirits to grant the community with abundant agricultural yields and a successful fishing season.

The 2,500,000 Bambarra people, also called Bamana, form the largest ethnic group within Mali and occupy the central part of the country, in an area of savannah. They live principally from agriculture, with some subsidiary cattle rearing in the northern part of their territory. The Bambarra people are pre-dominantly animists, although recently the Muslim faith has been spreading among them. The Bambarra kingdom was founded in the 17th century and reached its pinnacle between 1760 and 1787 during the reign of N’golo Diarra. For the most part, Bambarra society is structured around six male societies, known as de Dyow (sing. Dyo) (Bacquart,  Tribal Arts of Africa).