A performance mask from the Tam Mayoh chiefdom at Mabouo, in the Sultanate of Foumban, Cameroon. A carved wooden head is crowned by a leopard and joined to a large cloth body.

1. Form and Carving

The face is dark and smooth, with wide eyes outlined in white, a broad nose and a smiling mouth in which a band of white teeth is visible. The ears are rounded. A band of fine green ridges runs across the brow. Above it rise two clusters of faceted knobs, and between them stands a spotted leopard, its coat marked with dark dots and its face carved with incised whiskers.

2. Textile Body

Below the face, a padded fabric body in a muted olive tone swells outwards. A collar of concentric bands in red and yellow thread surrounds the neck, with small embroidered triangles beneath it. Rows of cowrie shells are sewn onto a woven panel across the middle, and a length of cloth with a red border hangs down at the front.

3. Context and Surface

The collection catalogue records the Tam Mayoh chiefdom at Mabouo as the mask's origin and refers the reader to a comparable piece in the collection. The wood is dark and polished on the face, while the cloth is faded, with scattered flecks of old paint.

Summary

A Bamum performance mask with a leopard-crowned head and a cowrie-decorated cloth body.