Two vintage African Masks Female and Male, Sculpted, Ivory Coast

  

The two masks, carved from wood, represent a man and a woman. In the Dan culture, also known as Gio or Yacouba, the terms. Ge' or'gle' were use to refer to both the masks and the spirits that resided in the forest.

For the Dans, the only way that a spirit could enter the human civilization was through a ceremony where a man wearing a mask and a costume performed in front of the village. It was believed that during the ritual, the man wearing the attire would inherit all the characteristics of the spirit which corresponded to the mask. These two masks represent both a female and a male version of the'ge' and'gle,' the forest spirits.

Although they are not original masks, these reproductions are estimated to have been made around the 1990s or earlier. Handle them with caution, as you never know which spirit might seek to inhabit you!