Headdress for Ci Wara Society
| Culture | Bamana |
|---|---|
| Title | Headdress for Ci Wara Society (Ci Wara Kun) |
| Date | First half of the 20th century |
| Medium | Wood and metal |
| Dimensions | Object: 36 1/4 × 13 1/8 × 3 3/8 in. (92.1 × 33.3 × 8.6 cm) Overall: 36 1/4 × 13 1/8 × 3 3/8 in. (92.1 × 33.3 × 8.6 cm) |
| Credit Line | Gift of Frederick Stafford, Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University |
| Accession Number | 60.10 |
| This artwork is currently on view. | |
Antelope headdress with long curving horns. The headdress contains a lot of openwork and fine detailed carving.
According to Bamana beliefs, humankind learned how to farm from a half-man, half-antelope deity known as Ci Wara. To honor this deity and to ensure his blessings on farm fields, men formed associations named after him, for which elaborate male and female antelope headdresses such as this were created. This one can be identified as male by the powerful and elaborate neck and mane; in addition, the female headdresses nearly always depict an infant antelope on the larger one’s back. Though the headdresses and their performances have lost much of their spiritual significance in most Bamana areas today, they have become a cultural symbol of Mali, and for many Westerners, the headdresses are icons of African art.
Provenance research is ongoing for this and many other items in the Eskenazi Museum of Art permanent collection. For more information about the provenance of this artwork, please contact the department curator with specific questions.
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"Headdress for Ci Wara Society | Collections Online." Collections Online. Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University, 2025. https://artmuseum.indiana.edu/collections-online/browse/object.php?number=60.10