NYC - Mallet
window. Established in London in 1865, Mallett is one of the oldest established
antiques dealers in the world, specializing in the finest pieces of furniture
and works of art. Seen in its Madison Avenue window this splendid Nafana Mask (Burkina
Faso, West Africa). This highly stylized
mask representing an abstract rendition of a water buffalo. The mask was strapped to a costume and the
wearer looked through the holes in the middle.
He held the mask in place with a bit in his mouth. Water buffalo were highly revered in tribal
farming communities.