On our shop you can find some masks PUNU. I think it is useful to explain a little where they originate.
The Punu (also called Bapunu, Mupunu plural) are an ethnic group mainly distributed in southern Gabon.
The masks are used to accompany funeral or withdrawals of mourning. These are masks of ancestors.
They express the serenity of their elders who protect and advise them from the kingdom of the dead.
The wearer of the mask is covered with a raffia costume. During the ceremonies, he cries out to frighten wild spectators. Mask anthropomorphic white (most common), his face is painted with kaolin. The white kaolin is associated with death. The black masks are in turn probably have a judicial function.
The enigmatic face of the mask is slightly triangular. Under the eyes closed, almond-stretched and inflated by as sleep, rounder cheekbones high places. The number and arrangement of scars vary from one style or one ethnic group to another. The most common reason, in the form of scales, has nine diamonds, sometimes two, depending on the group. Scarification frontal or temporal diamond nine points represent their cosmogony and evoke the notion of perfection and wisdom. The central point is the principle designer (God) who gave birth to the four cardinal points (the world) and the two primary couples (humans). This distinctive, named mabinda, was engraved in the flesh of children around the age of ten to fourteen. The high side plaits hairstyle confirms the sex of the ancestor.
Here is some history for the curious.
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