Mask Igbo-Izzi Ogbodo enyi Nigeria Wood H. 36 cm - L. 60 cm Mask with audacious volumes representing a stylized elephant head combined with human features. One can recognize the tusks of the animal and its trunk projecting from the middle of the forehead. The nose is anthropomorphic, as well as the face on the back of the mask. These human or ntekpe heads are interpreted in different ways. Some say that they are only there to please women and children frightened by the elephant. Others identify them with the children of the ogbodo, or with the children of the next generation, or see them as portraits of living villagers who are particularly appreciated, but without any elements that would allow them to be identified. The ntekpe would be reserved only for the masks of the elders who perform the dance of the most powerful spirit. It underlines their greater authority and superior spiritual capacity and confirms the existence of a hierarchy of age classes within this masquerade. A black and white geometric polychromy enhances the surface. A work of beautiful quality and in good condition.