Additional Information: This type of mask is used by various tribes in Gabon including the Punu and the Lumbo.  This spirit Maiden Mask known as Mukudji, Mukui or Moukouji or as duma or mvudi,"portrays a beautiful maiden with natural and serene expression on the face. As in life this beautiful maiden wears an elaborate crescent hairstyle. Such a mask would be worn with a colorful costume covering her body.  It represents a female guardian spirit in the initiation of young girls, funerary rites, ancestor cults, and also in dances of the full moon. At the burial ceremonies of the Puno society, the mask represented a female ancestor. In the Mukui society, the masked performer, sometimes on stilts, performed at the dance of the full moon. (See Segy's MASKS OF BLACK AFRICA.) The refined features and elaborate coiffure of the Puno masks mirror the appearance of tribal women. Social cohesion is ensured by the Mukudji society , whose primary role is to subjugate harmful forest spirits. The white pigments usually seen on such masks allude to the anti-witchcraft powers of this group. They are worn by the initiates, who are often on stilts. They are thought to represent ancestor's faces.  

• Type of Object: Mask
• Materials: Wood, pigment
• Country of Origin: Gabon
• Dimensions: Height: 15 InchesWidth: 8.5 Inches32 inches with beard
• People: Punu/Puno

Type of Object: MaskAfrica Direct