Ram Mask (Bolo)
Ram Mask (Bolo)
Attribution follows a published museum catalogue or peer-reviewed scholarship. Object is held in a public collection under a published accession number.
Bolo masks are primarily danced for entertainment during communal occasions like funerals, male initiations, and harvest celebrations. Comprising both animal and human features, the mask––always worn by a male dancer––refers to the cultural significance of the ram, an animal associated with male aggression across sub-Saharan Africa.
Catalogued by Cleveland Museum of Art as “Ram Mask (Bolo)”, dated possibly early 1900s. Harvested from the museum’s open-access record; every field below is copied from that record and none of it has been inferred.
Record
| People / culture | Bobo |
|---|---|
| Country | Burkina Faso |
| Common name | Ram Mask (Bolo) |
| Materials | Wood and paint |
| Dimensions | Overall: 45 x 36 x 36 cm (17 11/16 x 14 3/16 x 14 3/16 in.) |
Provenance
Jeanne Raguin, Golfe-Juan, France, sold to René and Odette Delenne (?–1962)
René [1901-1998] and Odette Delenne [1925-2012], Brussels, Belgium, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art (1962–2016)
The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (2016–)
| Collection | Cleveland Museum of Art |
|---|---|
| Accession number | 2016.56 |
Source
https://clevelandart.org/art/2016.56
This record is a catalogue entry, not an appraisal, valuation or legal determination. Nothing here should be read as evidence that an object was lawfully acquired or exported.