Archives | Mali
Bambara Antelope
Mali
Ci Wara headdress
Early 20th century
Carved wood and pigments
Height: 42.5 cm – 16 ¾ in.
Provenance
Ex collection Julius Carlebach, New York, 1952
Ex collection Jacques Germain, Canada
Sold
According to local original myths, an ancestral spirit named Ci Wara, of divine nature and appearing in an animal form, imparted knowledge and introduced agriculture to the Bambara (Bamana) people. This type of headdress, called Ci Wara, was carved to commemorate this primordial ancestor. Taking on the stylized shape of an antelope, this type of crest also symbolically referred to other animals from the Bambara mythological repertoire associated with the earth.
Ci Wara dancers adorned themselves in dark fiber (raffia) costumes that covered their entire bodies, leaving only the crest visible. Their precisely choreographed movements evoked the graceful movements of an antelope. The whole ceremony was considered a metaphor for the convergence of elemental forces (sun, earth, and water).
Since the early 20th century, Ci Wara crests have served as inspiration for prominent European artists such as Ferdinand Léger who admired their geometric stylizations and fascinating negative spaces.
Ci Wara dancers adorned themselves in dark fiber (raffia) costumes that covered their entire bodies, leaving only the crest visible. Their precisely choreographed movements evoked the graceful movements of an antelope. The whole ceremony was considered a metaphor for the convergence of elemental forces (sun, earth, and water).
Since the early 20th century, Ci Wara crests have served as inspiration for prominent European artists such as Ferdinand Léger who admired their geometric stylizations and fascinating negative spaces.
Explore the entire collection
