Tankagle Mask of the Dan: What It Was For and Why It Matters
Dan | Liberia and Côte d'Ivoire | Festival / Celebration
What was it for?
An entertainment mask associated with singing, dancing and community celebration. The Tankagle performs at harvest festivals and public celebrations, bringing laughter and music to the gathered crowd. It belongs to the joyful side of Dan masquerade.
What does it look like?
Often has a wide, open mouth to suggest singing, and may include carved teeth. It is decorated with beads and fabric more elaborately than many judicial or warrior masks, so it reads at once as a mask of celebration rather than of fear.
Why does it matter?
The Tankagle's role reveals the Dan understanding of what a community needs: not only governance and protection, but joy. The spirit world provides all of it, and a mask made for entertainment is no less a spirit than a mask made for judgement.
One thing most people never know
Museums classify the Tankagle as a Dan entertainment mask, a reminder that in Dan thought entertainment is a proper task for a spirit. The laughter and music it brings are part of its work, not a distraction from it.
Further reading: the source record for this entry.
This entry is part of the SEVICS Africa archive of 100 African masks. If you own a mask like this and want to know more about it, try our Mask Identifier.
