BeNue River, Nigeria
The Benue River area of Nigeria is replete with tribes borrowing mask forms from each other. Here, Igbo, Igala and Ogoni family masks relate to each other in many ways: size, material, surface, style, iconography and spiritual function. The Ogoni masquette on the left, representing a human being, is called ‘Elu’. Like many Ogoni masks, it has a distinctive hairstyle.