The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of March 24, 2024

Mask (mbap mteng): Elephant (aka)

Mask (mbap mteng): Elephant (aka)

early 1900s
Location: not on view

Did You Know?

Performers wore elephant masks with indigo-dyed robes, red feather headdresses, and leopard pelts. Leopards and elephants symbolized royal power.

Description

The name given to masks like this, mbap mteng, means "animal with huge ears." In the Cameroon Grassfields kingdoms the elephant signifies power, authority, prestige, and leadership. The colorful glass beads that decorate the mask’s surface were imported from Venice and Bohemia (in Europe) and signal wealth and prosperity. Members of Kuosi, an exclusive male secret society, wore such elephant masks for ritual dances and funerary ceremonies.
  • ?–1985
    L. Kahan Gallery Inc., New York.
    1985–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art by purchase
  • Dr. Kristen Laciste, "Elephant Mask (Bamileke Peoples)," in Smarthistory, June 7, 2023, https://smarthistory.org/elephant-mask-kuosi-society-bamileke-peoples-cameroon/. smarthistory.org
  • Object in Focus: Elephant Mask (Bamileke People-Cameroon). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (December 1, 1998-January 31, 1999).
    African art rotation. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (June 20, 2011–October 28, 2013),
  • {{cite web|title=Mask (mbap mteng): Elephant (aka)|url=false|author=|year=early 1900s|access-date=24 March 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1985.1082