BEAUTIFUL ANTIQUE MENDE BUNDO HELMET MASK 17" TALL Start Price USD 299.99 Current Price USD 299.99 Time Left - Bid Count 0 Buy It Now Price - Reserve Price - Start Time Friday, September 05, 2008 End Time Friday, September 12, 2008 Location TANQUE VERDE VALLEY See more about 'BEAUTIFUL ANTIQUE MENDE BUNDO HELMET MASK 17" TALL' Description  MENDE HELMET MASK OF THE SENDE WOMEN'S SOCIETY 17 ” TALL AND 12 ” ACROSS 35 +  YEARS OLD. GOOD WEAR EXCELLENT  CONDITION SMALL AGE CRACKS,********************C.1970 Shipping is $ 40.00 + USA.* 65.00 + INTERNATIONALINSURANCE INCLUDED SUPER HEAVY WOOD   *" There are many secret societies in Africa. Some are headed by women, some by men. Sometimes the societies themselves are secret, i.e., no one other than the members know who belongs to the societies. In other cases, members are known to non-members, but the society has information and rituals that are known only to society members. The mask form is is found only in the female-only Sande Society of Sierra Leone and Liberia. The Sande Society is responsible for teaching young women the skills and knowledge they will need as adults. The society operates the schools that initiate young women into adulthood.Initiation schools may last for anywhere from six months to three years ,depending on the country and ethnic group. The society is also responsible for enforcing the laws that are passed down from the female ancestors. Even the chief must obey the laws of the Sande Society. There is much misinformation printed about the society, largely because Europeans interpret the society from an outsider's viewpointThe Sande Society is found throughout Sierra Leone and Liberia. It is found among many people, including the Mende, Sherbro, Temne, Dei, Vai, Kpelle, Gola, Kono, Limba, Bassa, and Homwe. This exhibition will contain examples from several of these groups. The masks are helmet-type, i.e., they fit over the head of the dancer, rather than fitting only over the face. The masks are the property of the initiates themselves, and are worn at Society functions, at a parade marking the end of initiation, and at public festivals. At many public festivals the society holds a series of challenge dances at which each dancer attempts to out-do the others. All of the masks are carved by professional carvers who are men, even though only women are permitted toown the masks. The design for the masks must fit into prescribed stylistic parameters, or they cannot be used for Sande Society functions. In some cases, the particular details of a mask come to a relative of the initiate in a dream. The dream is then related to the carver, who translates the information into the stylistic elements of the mask. The masks are generally dyed a dark brown or black. On rare occasions, I have also seen white-faced masks. Holes are drilled around the bottom of the mask, through which are attached strands of raffia that are usually dyed black. The dancer's costume consists of a dark blue or black "dress-like" garment to which dyed raffais attached. The dancer wears dark gloves and stockings, as well as trousers. No one recognizes the dancer because she is covered from head to foot. The masks are carved from a wood very similar to balsa; this is doneto keep the mask as light-weight as possible. The weight of the mask is one of the characteristics used to determine how beautiful the mask is. Very heavy masks are most likely not carved for use by dancers. All the masks, regardless of the people who produce them, share some similarities. They are usually black or brown. They are helmet masks that fit over the entire headof the dancer. They are very wide at the bottom, where there are rolls that circle the bottom of the mask. While it is true that women who are fatter are considered more beautiful, for a variety of reasons, there is no evidence that women are expected to be as large as the neck rolls on the mask would suggest. Some authors say that the rolls on the neck represent fat; others indicate that they depict concentric ripples of water that take place when the Sande spirit, which is a water spirit, emerges from the lake or river. There may be some measure of truth to each of these theories, but the most often overlooked reason for the large neck, which is larger in circumference than the rest of the mask, is a matter of stylistic necessity. The neck must be large in order to allow the mask to fit over the dancer's head. The rolls also reflect the belief that women who have lines in their necks are more beautiful. It is believed that everyone has a neck to keep her head off her shoulders, but if God took the time to etch lines on your neck, you must be a special person. Often, young women tie strings around their necks before they go to sleep, knowing that when they awake, they will have beautiful necks. The variety of the mask is almost unlimited, even though they must fit established stylistic norms. There are many hairstyles depicted on the masks, as varied as the styles women in Sierra Leone and Liberia wear. Special "medicine" pouches, animal horns, and other materialsmay be added to the mask in order to provide extra power for higher ranking officials of the society. Tin, silver, and even hammered gold decorations can be found on masks belonging to the highest ranking officials. The superstructure of the mask is as important as the face and other parts of the mask. Again, the forms used on the superstructure, or top, of the masks are almost endless. I have seen European crowns, pith helmets, cooking pots, beds, gold weights, birds, snakes, European religious and royal figures, horns, and other items carved into the surface of these masks. One theme that is very common on the superstructure, but is hardly ever mentioned, is sexuality. Many of the forms are stylized female labia. Images suggesting the male penis also appear often. It should be noted that there are many societies in Africa that use masking traditions. However, of all the societies that I have visited or studied, the Sande Society is the only one I have discovered in which women are masked dancers. The masks themselves are called Bundu or Sowei. While enrolled in the Sande school, the young initiates learn many secrets, among which is the art of using herbs, spices, and roots to make poisons, love potions, and impotency powders. Revealing any of the society's secrets to men or non-initiates would result in sanctions ranging from banishment to death. During their training, the young initiates "die" ritually and are reborn as new human beings. When the initiates return to their homes, they have new Sande names. It is also during this training that the young initiates undergo the highly controversial operation, the clitorectomy. Membership in the Sande society is highly sought because few opportunities exist for women who have not been initiated into the Sande Society. If you wish to learn more, there are three very good books on the group. They are *SANDE by Daniel Mato and Charles Miller III, BUNDU by Burkhard Gottchalk, and REPRESENTING WOMAN: SANDE MASQUERADES OF THE MENDE OF SIERRA LEONE by Ruth B. Phillips. PLEASE READ THE LISTING BEFORE BIDDING .  DO NOT BID IF YOU ARE NOT GOING TO PAY. POLICIES: Buyer prepays, plus shipping and handling. INSURANCE is INCLUDED.  Winning bidders outside of the United States get Air  Mail. After the auction has ended, I will send you email notification of your winning bid, requesting your shipping information. Upon your reply, due within 3 business days, I will email you with complete information for mailing in your payment or charging through PayPal (available for U.S. customers and now most International countries). Payments are due within 14 days from close of auction. Seller reserves the right to relist item if payment is not received within stated time. Please check out my feedback comments left by ALL MY satisfied customers regarding my accuracy of descriptions, quality of merchandise and care in shipping. As an Ebay Power Seller we guarantee our descriptions to be accurate. Sorry, no refunds for buyer's remorse. I invite you to please view my listing of other current eBay auctions. Multiple auctions won by the same bidder can be combined to help save on postage. SELLER RETAINS THE RIGHT TO NOT SELL TO ANY BIDDER I buy by the container in Africa. I work with procurers throughout The West  and Central African territories. They bring items  to Ivory coast. There my partners  choose what we want.  We also scout other traders and suppliers to get things from Central Africa. I offer product to you on eBay at wholesale prices. Check my feedback. 25% are retailers. 20% are institutions, schools, galleries and museums. Yes, I do sell museum quality stuff at eBay prices. The reason for this is that in Africa people are poor and starving, illness and disease are rampant. The average income is $ 300.00 per year throughout West Africa.  We will  deplete supplies in the next twenty to thirty years of the better,older stuff. There are a lot of folk living in Africa, but many of the old customs are passing away with the years. Please buy for aesthetics, symbolism and for investments sake. Don’t feel any guilt  that we are exploiting the ethnic societies, but rather  that we are helping to preserve that which will surely  soon disappear. Be Aware of Additional Customs Costs  It is not uncommon for buyers to pay additional costs such as duties, taxes and customs clearance fees. For example, international shipping rates may or may not include pickup and door-to-door delivery with customs clearance. Your package will arrive at your door, but then you might need to pay extra international fees. Even if duties and taxes were not applicable there may still be an administrative fee for processing the goods through the border.As a buyer, it is important to be aware of what customs charges may apply for your country and product before you bid or purchase your item. I do not have a store, only a large warehouse. I sell only on eBay. I am a one person enterprise. When I am late on answering emails or in shipping it is because I ‘m not a @ home. PLEASE EMAIL THROUGH EBAY. I  do appreciate your support.  I  PRICE ON A COST PLUS FORMULA. NOT NECESSARILY MARKET VALUE.  THIS MEANS GREAT VALUE TO YOU. 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