Ivorian Baule Mask - Ebony Woman With Braided Headdress Stool sometimes adorned with animal representations

sometimes adorned with animal representations like antelope horns or bird figures

appreciated for their beauty and symbolic meaning

Tellem Dongon from Mali

and metal further enhances the mask's aesthetic and symbolic value

The Powder glass beads date back to 970 in South Africa

Ivorian Baule Mask - Ebony Woman With Braided Headdress Stool sometimes adorned with animal representationsBaule Mask from Ivory Coast 20th Century The Baule people are one of the largest ethnic groups in Cote dIvoire (Ivory Coast). They belong to the Akan peoples who inhabited Ghana centuries ago. According to a legend, in the eighteenth century, the queen mother, Abla Pokou had to lead her people west to the shores of Comoe, the land of Senufo. To cross the river she sacrificed her son. This sacrifice originated the name Baule, for Baouli means the child