Formal Analysis of Benin Ivory Pendant Mask
The title of the piece that I selected as posted on the accompanying plaque is “Benin Ivory Pendant Mask”. ... Although the name of the artist is unknown, according to the information given, it was created by the exclusive guild of royal ivory carvers in the sixteenth century CE. We can deduce these extrinsic characteristics because of the condition that the mask is in and by the style which coincides with African art. This piece of art is made of ivory, about 25 centimeters high, symmetrical, has a shape of an ellipse. ... When looking at the mask, one can see that it is a representation of a woman. ... The mask is made of ivory with a burlywood color. The plaque explains that in Benin, ivory is related to the color white, a symbol of ritual purity that is associated with Olokun, god of the sea. Not only is it white, but it is itself Benins principle commercial commodity and it helped attract the Portuguese traders who also brought wealth to Benin (according to the plaque).