Gouro - Lot 17

Gouro Zamblé mask Ivory Coast Wood, pigments H. 35 cm Provenance : Roger Blondel Collection, "BR BRUSS Stéphane Kurc Collection, Paris At the heart of the Gouro pantheon, Zamblé embodies a mythical fi gure half-man half-animal, husband of the beautiful Gu brother of the savage Zuali. Sculptors depict him in spectacular masks combining anthropo-zoomatic combining anthropo-zoomorphic elements: antelope horns, the panting jaws of a dog or a crocodile and human details such as scarification marks and hair implantation. The dancer, the medium of this entity, traditionally wore a panther skin over a light-colored loincloth, completing the ritual appearance. The founding myth tells of an ancestral hunter who, in the middle of the forest, sees a creature of dazzling rapi- dity. a dazzlingly fast creature, combining the features of a panther, an antelope and a crocodile - a vision that gave birth to Zamblé. Zamblé. Faithful to this tradition, Gouro sculptors have long followed strict formal codes, leaving little room- individual interpretation, although variations in proportions, inclination of horns and of the horns or the decorations bear witness to the hand of the creator. The present example, from the Kurc collection, is a remarkable illustration of this: elegantly curved back horns, decorated with polychrome geometric motifs, and traces of internal wear attest- ing to authentic ritual use. authentic ritual use.