IDOMA, NIGERIA

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Ichahoho is a warrior’s society and masquerade tradition indigenous to the southern Idoma, regional neighbors to the Igbo, with whom they share some artistic influences. During the dry season, on the day of the dead, costumed ichahoho performers would historically dance with machetes, offering displays of youthful hubris and issuing challenges of mock battle to the older men in attendance. Their aggressive and striking appearance, white-faced with jutting horns and sharp noses, fanned a current of excitement and danger through the assembly.

This fine mask is a powerful example of the ichahoho form, carved with detailed care without sacrificing the brusque attitude appropriate to the masquerade. Horns and nose project forcefully outward, creating a dramatic profile. The deep black coiffure amplifies the ghostly aspect of the face, with its kaolin pallor and bared teeth. A dense fringe of fiber with a textured beard frames the perimeter of the mask. This piece is attributed to Ochai of Otobi, a master carver who was active between 1910 and 1950. Unlike most other artists, Ochai was a full-time sculptor and had commissions from a wide range of villages beyond the borders of Otobi in south-central Nigeria.