Mossi Crest “zazaigo” Burkina Faso

Mossi crest “zazaigo” Burkina Faso. Wood and textiles, polychromy. Height: 23 cm The antelope, made of monoxyl wood, is made up of three parts resting on an oval base: the neck and the head of the animal with long horizontally curved horns, the other two parts representing the body for the one and the tail for the other, all on a braided plant support. Height: 23 cm The zazaigo dance crests were only attributed to the Mossi late – in 1973 – thanks to information published by Hélène and Henri Kamer (Upper Volta, 1973, p. 96). Dancing during funerals, “their appearance guarantees the ancestors that the deceased was a respectable member of their clan and contributes to the serene journey of his spirit between the world of the living and that of ancestral spirits” (D. Roy, Mossi, 2015, p . 58). The iconography of this classic crest is based on the stylized double representation of the widpelego auber antelope, highlighted by the echo of the geometric patterns and the contrast of the polychrome flat areas. Presumed period: mid-20th century