A Senufo "Wanyugo" mask, also know as "Fire-spitter" mask, Northern Ivory Coast, is a zoomoarphic helmet mask, worn by members of the all-male Senufo association known as Poro. Its iconographic details are taken from several animals such as the hyena, the antelope, the crocodile and the monkey, on the top of antelopes head, in this case between its long horns is a hyena, the main part of the mask is a chimare half crocodile/half antelope with a long jaw and a mouth full of dangerous looking teeth; encrusted patina, remnants of white kaolin.

"The masquerade incorporates natural substances and iconographic elements linked to the aggressive and combative powers of dangerous creatures of the bush. This mask's virulent attributes—jaws and teeth like the crocodile's, horns like the great antelope's, and tusks like the warthog's—are but a few of the elements that allude to knowledge, power, danger, and death. The most dominant motifs of these wanyugo helmet masks are the warthog tusks that sprout from the top and sides of the two snouts. The wild boar, when angered, is a destructive and mindless force, its erratic and violent nature the very opposite of the principles the Poro society emphasizes with regards to ideal human behavior. The daggerlike tusk is a visual metaphor of the pain and disorder that is brought about in Senufo society through supernatural and human malevolence. The sculptor contrasts the sharp angles of the many teeth and tusks with the more supple forms of a pair of chameleons at the top of the helmet. The chameleon is a potent icon with references to transformational powers as well as primordial knowledge." Source: Met NY

The mask was used in the funeral ceremonyies of the Senufo people of the region around Korhogo, Ivory Coast.

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Height: 97 cm
Weight: 2,3 kg