Wood, patina, plant fibers, scarification marks on the forehead, open eyes, tube shaped projections on the temples, hinged jaw carved with sharp teeth, painted black, red pigment remains inside the mouth.

The Ibibio live in a densely forested area in southwest Nigeria. Social control is exercised through the use of masks and figures representing good and evil spirits. One group of masks deals with socially negative attributes and with the spirits of persons who have either died in socially unacceptable ways or who have violated codes or laws. These are known as Idiok Ekpo , the so-called ugly ghost masks, and are represented with masks which embody ugliness, distortions, or violence. The Idiok spirit dancers only appear at night. Covered with blackened raffia they dance in wild, erratic movements to incite fear.
Signs of abrasion on base, insect caused damage.
H: 24,5 cm (9 3/5 inch).

Literature: Marcilene K. Wittmer and William Arnett, Three Rivers of Nigeria (Atlanta: The High Museum of Art, 1978), p. 67, ill. 157.

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Regional & Ethnic Antiques