Igbo Okoroshi Oma Mask

Igbo Okoroshi mask from a prolific workshop of Okoroshi masks. Herbert Cole and Chike Aniakor describe the Okoroshi tradition in Igbo Arts: Community and Cosmos, writing that during the peak of the rainy season, masqueraders congregate in several Igbo village groups to perform and dance. These maskers are called Okoroshi, meaning “water spirit”; some Okoroshi represent “beautiful spirits” — Oma — while others function as more menacing or deliberately unattractive presences — Ojo. This mask represents the Oma character and was discovered, along with others, wrapped in newspaper dated June 16, 1974 in a warehouse cache. Other items found in these boxes were similarly from southern Nigeria, areas caught up in the Biafran Civil War, 1967 – 1970. Ex collection Sidney and Gae Berman. A similar mask to this one is featured in Igbo Arts: Community and Cosmos by Herbert Cole and Chike Aniakor, 1984:204 #317.

14”

Inquire About This Item