{"product_id":"senufo-kpelie-mask-cote-divoire-matter-collection-153796","title":"Senufo Kpelie Mask Côte d'Ivoire MATTER COLLECTION","description":"\u003cp\u003eThis Kpeli-yehe mask combines elements of Senufo mythology and culturally known symbols. The small legs below the chin symbolize the hornbill bird, one of the Senufo primordial creatures and the first to be hunted by men. The heart-shaped face and protruding lips are style elements of Senufo sculpture. Kepelie masks would dance a funeral for elderly women and men, the newly dead who have now joined the ancestors. The Senufo are a large dispersed population living primarily in Côte d'Ivoire and Mali in small self-administered villages supporting themselves primarily as farmers. Though generally autonomous the villages are joined through a shared men's secret society known as Poro or Pondo that is responsible for the initiation of young boys and men into different levels of society and to exercise social control and instruct members and initiates in religious wisdom and knowledge of the bush spirits.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWomen have their counterpart to this in their divination society, known as Sando. Among the Senufo people, funerary ceremonies serve as a primary occasion for the appearance of art during ritual displays. It is during the funerals of senior members of the Poro society and women's society that dances are held to celebrate the life of the deceased.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eProvenance: Matter Collection\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eFrom the collection of Margie and Phil Matter. Margie lived in South Africa, and later she and her husband Phil opened a gallery in Tucson. Everything in this collection was in their home for more than thirty years. Africa Direct recently bought the collection; at 95, Margie wants to share the things she has loved so much.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"Polaris-Box\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"_ActivatorWrapper_1q6fc_73\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"PRODUCT.metafields.custom.height_in_-anchor\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"_ActivatorButton_1q6fc_77\" aria-label=\"Edit Height (In) metafield\" role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"_RowWrapper_1q6fc_4\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"_FormFieldLabel_1q6fc_30\"\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"Polaris-Text--root Polaris-Text--bodyMd\"\u003eHeight (In) 14.0\u003cbr\u003eWidth (In) 7.0\u003cbr\u003eDepth (In) 4.0\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan data-sheets-root=\"1\"\u003e153796\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"sku 153000","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51166700011815,"sku":"153796","price":290.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0826\/1015\/9911\/files\/IMG_7913.jpg?v=1773860595","url":"https:\/\/africadirect.com\/products\/senufo-kpelie-mask-cote-divoire-matter-collection-153796","provider":"Africa Direct","version":"1.0","type":"link"}