Cleveland Museum of Art

Headdress (Zigiren-Wɔndɛ)

Date

early to mid-1900s

Medium

Wood, glass beads, upholstery studs, and natural fiber

Culture

Africa, West Africa, Guinea, Baga-style carver

Department

African Art

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

Owned and used for entertainment by young unmarried men only among some Baga subgroups, this type of headdress is said to represent the Maiden, a beautiful young woman. With a beaded necklace and eyes embellished with furniture tacks, the headdress was attached to a cone-shaped costume consisting of colorful cloths and raffia and constructed over a bamboo armature. The performer of this mask grasped the projecting "legs" to steady it while balancing it on his head.

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