Kifwebe Mask

Place of OriginZaire (modern Democratic Republic of Congo)

DateEarly 20th century

DimensionsH: 23 1/2 in. (59.7 cm); With raffia: 43 1/2 in. (110.5 cm); Max W (across face): 11 9/16 in. (29.4 cm); Depth: 13 3/8 in. (34.0 cm)

MediumCarved wood with polychrome painted decoration and raffia

ClassificationSculpture

Credit LinePurchased with funds from the Libbey Endowment, Gift of Edward Drummond Libbey

Object number

1973.8

Not on View

Label TextIn the Songye language, the word for mask is kifwebe (pronounced kif-WAY-bay). This word identifies large masks used by the Bwadi ya Kifwebe secret societies in rituals to control social behavior and to neutralize witches and other disruptive people. Colonial authorities tried to stamp out the society, but it had a rebirth in the 1920s and 1930s, when this mask was made, as a protest against the Belgian colonial government. This mask represents a male, distinguished from female masks by the prominent crest along the top and its protruding eyes.