Epa mask
Epa masks take part in the cult of the same name, also called elefon in Benin.
MFG-59
Documented paths
Yoruba masks: Epa and Gelede
An Epa mask and a Gelede mask invite different readings. Jesús Arrimadas Saavedra’s catalogue records them under distinct names, with their own photographs and accounts. This selection brings together six records, making those differences accessible without treating Yoruba art as a single masking tradition.
MFG-59 offers a starting point for Epa, while MCYC-9, MFANT-86 and MCYC-18 form a separate sequence named Gelede. Original references accompany the photographs. Each object record opens further views and the complete historical text, including interpretations that remain open to discussion.
Documented context
UNESCO locates Gelede’s oral heritage among Yoruba-Nago communities in Benin, Nigeria and Togo. It describes masks, song and dance honouring women’s social role. The Met records Epa or Elefon as a separate mask designation associated with Nigeria.
UNESCO · Patrimonio oral Gelede · The Metropolitan Museum of Art · Helmet Mask (Epa or Elefon)
Reading the catalogue
Original historical document in Spanish
Las máscaras epa participan en el culto del mismo nombre, llamado también elefon en Benin.
Jesús Arrimadas Saavedra · original catalogue · MFG-59
This quotation retains the archive’s wording. Editorial context and comparative sources do not certify the objects’ attribution, age or provenance.
Objects to explore
Gelede helmet mask
The Gelede cult, practiced mainly by the Yoruba Westerners, it is a cult in honor of living or deceased elderly women.
MCYC-9
Gelede mask
Gelede mask dedicated to the cult of the twins.
MFANT-86
Gelede helmet mask
It is believed that the origin of the Geledé cult occurs on the occasion of the mythical passage from matriarchal society to…
MYL-7
Epa helmet mask
These masks represent the principal Orishas, incarnation of the attributes of Olorum, the supreme and distant God of men.
MYL-9
Gelede helmet mask
Gelede society practices the cult that gives its name to older women, “our mothers” (awon sya wa) who can use their powers…
MCYC-18
An editorial reading of the collection; complete documents remain in the object records.
Browse records for this culture · Yoruba
