Fang Four Faced Helmet Mask, Based

A face in every direction. Nothing gets past this mask.

This four faced helmet mask is Fang, from Gabon in Central Africa, carved in the 20th century from wood with kaolin. Fang masks of this type are often linked to ngontang dances, performed for festivities and funeral rites and worn by male dancers, though the meaning of the multiple faces is debated. White kaolin brightens the faces, which sit in dark relief on the sides of a tall helmet. The eyes are thin slits under arched brows. Geometric lines are cut into the wood, and small holes line the lower edge. Twenty-four inches high and 12 in diameter.

It sees all four walls at once.