Kuba Chameleon Mask
This is a chameleon mask from the Kuba-Ngeende people who were integrated into the eastern part of the Kuba kingdom during the sixteenth century, in Congo.
This type of masks is known as Pwoom Itok (also found among the Kuba-Bushoong, and the Shoowa).
It represents a “wise old man” in initiation ceremonies but some ethnologists say it was also used in the apprehension of criminals.
It has the peculiar characteristic of conical pupil, symbolising the eyes of the chameleon (all seeing eyes)
Estimated age: about 50 to 60 years.
