Bakwélé - Silk 90cm

Masks play a key role in Kwele society, a people found in Gabon and Congo.

Our silk square "Bakwélé" symbolizes a zoomorphic mask or antelope mask from Gabon. They appear during the "Bwètè", ceremony during which the heads of each family, potential future village chief, in order to avoid any confrontation and promote social cohesion, go into the forest to hunt antelope, whose flesh accompanied by medicinal plants is served for the closing meals of the celebration. Scarcely worn, these masks adorn the dwellings during this ceremony, in order to attract beneficial forces and protect against evil spirits.