Accession Number
1982/2.52

Title
Bwoom type mask

Artist(s)
Kuba

Artist Nationality
Kuba (Democratic Republic of Congo style)

Object Creation Date
circa 1890-1910

Medium & Support
wood and paint

Dimensions
13 in x 14 1/16 in x 17 15/16 in (33 cm x 35.8 cm x 45.5 cm)

Credit Line
Gift of Al and Margaret Coudron

Label copy
One published account of the Kuba traditon asserts that Mboom was not the brother of Mwaash a mbooy but a person of modest standing scarcely worthy of being embodied by the king. According to this account, a 19th-century Kuba king, Miko mi mbul (ca. 1800-1835) was entranced by the Mboom dancer's costume and dance and wanted to imitate him. Hence the king commissioned a similar mask but used leather covered with beads instead of wood.

Primary Object Classification
Wood and Woodcarving

Primary Object Type
mask

Collection Area
African

Rights
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Keywords
carvings (visual works)
initiations
masks
masquerades
prestige