Tribal Art

The Mambila mask Suaga Bor is easily identifiable thanks to its gaping and toothed mouth as well as the pair of horns that cover it.
This type of zoomorphic mask is defined as a dog-magpie mask .
More than a mouth, it is the mouth of the dog, all protruding teeth, which is ready to bite its prey.
This type of mask differs from the canons of traditional Mambila art by its atypical zoomorphic forms.
It embodies a fierce aspect of the forces of nature and only appears at sowing festivals.
In the procession he is always accompanied by another mask, this time with a human face that fights the negative forces of the Suaga Bor mask.

Despite their small number, the thirty thousand Mambila (or Mambila, Mambere, Nor, Torbi, Lagubi, Tagbo, Tongbo, Bang, Ble, Juli, Bea)(the "men", in Fulani), settled in the northwest of Cameroon, created a large number of masks and statues easily identified by their heart-shaped faces. Although the Mambila believe in a creator god named Chang or Nama, they only worship their ancestors. Their leaders were buried in granaries like wheat as they were believed to symbolize prosperity. Masks and statues were not to be seen by women. Matte crusty patina. Despite their small number, the thirty thousand Mambila (or Mambilla, Mambere, Nor, Torbi< /b>, Lagubi, Tagbo, Tongbo, Bang, Ble, < b> Juli , Bea ), settled in the northwest of Cameroon, created a large number of easily identifiable masks and statues such as the Tadep statues with their heart-shaped faces. There is still a large production of terracotta objects, a sign of the influence of the ancient Sao civilization further north, towards Chad.