Kurumba (Fulsi, Korumba, Kouroumba), Burkina Faso

Antelope Headdress. The Kurumba people live in the north of Burkina Faso. They cultivate millet and cotton, and rear cattle in the savannah regions. The Kurumba produce a naturalistic mask headdress in the form of antelope head. These finely-shaped antelope heads are colorfully painted. The headdress represents Yirige, the culture hero, who drove away evil spirits at the first tilling of the land. Mask dancers descended from heaven repeat the deeds of the hero-founder Yirige and his children. The mask also appears at the death ritual following the mourning period. It was used to drive away the soul of the deceased, who might harm the living. The headdress, which to an observer seems impossible for a dancer to balance, is fastened to the head with a plaited basket or by some other way.

Material: wood

Size:  47”x16”x6½”