Bamum Mask

This mask was created by the Bamum people of the Cameroon grasslands roughly around the late 19^th to early 20^th century.  It is composed of wood, horn, plant fiber and spider silk. The Bamum were once part of another group of eastern grassland peoples the Tikar.  Roughly 200 years ago they were pushed away from the Tikar and forced to migrate south (McCulloch).  This mask incorporates many principle artistic themes of the Bamum. These principle styles can be seen to represent the Bamum values of wisdom, power and spirituality.

A major artistic principle employed in this mask is the representation of the skull.  This depiction of the skull, with its vigorously carved features, as well as its round forms stays true to traditional Bamum style (Keeling Wittmer).  To the Bamum the skull was a very important part of the body because it symbolized their value of wisdom.  Wisdom was such a vital aspect of life that when a family member died the eldest male member of the family kept the skull of the deceased (McCulloch).

Another traditional aspect of this mask is the horns used to frame the face because they were typically thought to have a connotation of healing and magic. Horns also symbolized the power of the animal they once belonged to (Mullen Kreamer).  Aspects of this mask such as the horn can be seen to represent the Bamum value of power.  A headdress such as this one was used in performance during which the Bamum leader wanted to demonstrate his dominance over all the surrounding villages and was also thought to have the ability to centralize power for the entire village (Keeling Wittmer). 

The eyes of this mask are covered by silk taken from the ground- casing of a tarantula.  This tarantula lives underground and appears at night (Mullen Kreamer).  Spider casing, commonly used in Bamum art, can be seen to represent their value of spirituality. The ground tarantula served as a metaphor for powers that unite the earthy and spiritual domains.  The Bamum used this spider for guidance to divine knowledge (Mullen Kreamer). 

Analyzing the vast amount of information one can learn about a civilization through studying their art, in addition to, visiting this exhibit opened my eyes to the idea that art played an entirely different role in the lives of people such as the Bamum. The most striking aspect of this mask, as well as the exhibit as a whole, is the deep connection these civilizations had to the art they created.  In Western culture the main purpose of art is to aesthetically please.  In our culture art can carry a message that the artist wishes to convey.  To me, the art from this exhibit seemed to fulfill an active role in the lives of the people who created it.  This mask was crafted to serve as a representation of bringing the Bamum people together as a whole. In my opinion, the civilizations represented in this exhibit had a much deeper connection with the art they created than our culture had or has today.

As a result of this deep connection it seems as if each component of pieces like this mask were meticulously thought out.  It is amazing that almost every aspect of this mask has a deeper representation behind it such as the spider casings coving the eyes or the horns that frames the face.  Great thought went into making sure this art represented something about the Bamum culture.