Barkcloth mask Táwü (125cm long x 100cm wide)

A barkcloth mask

The Cubeo people of southeast Colombia made this barkcloth mask, sometime before 1968 when it became part of World Museum Liverpool's collection.

Cubeo masks represent different spirits (takahédekokü), including animals, insects and forest demons. This mask, táwü, is said to represent the sun - you can see a sun motif on the front.

These types of masks are worn by men during an Oyne mourning ceremony. The ceremony celebrates the deceased person's life and contributions to society, and is held a year after their death. At its end the mask is burnt to mark the end of the relatives' relationship with the dead.

Masquerades are important to many Amazonian people:

• they are used in initiation and mourning ceremonies
• they reinforce the structure of the community by bringing people together for a single purpose - there they drink chicha (manioc beer), socialise and gossip, making important social ties
• the masks used in masquerades represent animal spirits, ancestors and mythic beings who brought order to the world.

Back to Americas section | Next object (Feather headdress)