Bamileke Headdress, Cameroon

A black pom pom the size of a tabletop, with a few white quill tips peeking through.

This headdress is Bamileke, from Cameroon, Central Africa, and is contemporary. It is chicken feather. Bamileke feather headdresses of this kind are generally associated with the Cameroon Grassfields, where they are worn in dance and festivity. Long, narrow black feathers radiate from a tight center, layered in thick rings. The feathers lean outward in a ragged, tufted fringe, and a few pale quill ends show among the black. It is 7 inches high and 30 in diameter.

Dark, full and dressed for an entrance.