Kwele Antelope Mask, Republic of Congo

Reportedly collected in French Congo (present day Republic of Congo) by Alexandre Petit-Renaud between 1901 and 1930
Philippe and Laurant Dodier, Avranches
Michael Oliver, New York
Private American Collection, acquired from the above

Very good condition overall for an object of this type and age. Minor nicks, scratches and abrasions throughout consistent with age and use. Small wooden pegs inserted into side for attachment, with traces of fabric remaining. Small brass mount attached to reverse for hanging. Fine aged patina with dark pigment and kaolin.
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Kwele antelope are exceedingly rare. Several related masks are recorded in important museum collections: one in the Musée Barbier-Mueller, Geneva (inv. no. "1019-49", Schmalenbach 1988: 210, cat. 127); a second in the in the British Museum, London (Trowell and Nevermann 1968: 70); a third in the Musée Dapper, Paris (collected by Aristide Courtois before 1938, Falgayrettes-Leveau 1995: 61); a fourth in the Kulturen Museum, Lund (inv. no. "51.467.113"); and a fifth in the Etnografiscka Museum, Gothenburg (Leuzinger 1970: 241, pl. Q 9).

Hahner-Herzog (1998: text to cat. 69) notes: "The rare masks of the Kwele, a little-investigated ethnic group of northeast Gabon and the adjacent area of the Republic of Congo, are associated with the Bwete association, which maintains social order.  The masks are also used in initiation rites and at the end of periods of mourning.  Representing benevolent forest spirits, they have zoomorphic or anthropomorphic traits, or a combination of the two.  The faces are usually painted in white kaolin earth, a pigment associated by the Kwele with light and clarity, the two essential factors in the fight against evil."

Discussing the aforementioned Barbier-Mueller mask, she continues: "The rare Kwele masks with vertically projecting horns exhibit a range of stylistic differences. Some examples, such as the one illustrated here and those in Göteborg and London depict antelopes."