Dorsal Mask Tiburon fin

The facial masks are undoubtedly the most used by all African ethnic groups, there are also numerous helmet and helmet masks, less known the shoulder masks used in dances by very few ethnic groups, but without any doubt that the least known for their rarity are the back masks, used by the Bidjogo of the Bissago Islands of Guinea-Bissau. Apparently it's the only town that wears this original type of masks. As almost all the masks of the Bidjogos are zoom masks representing a large number of animals, according to the ceremonies of the different age classes in which they participate, animals of unclear definition due to their unprocessed forms that are used in the early stages of initiation in which the neophytes are poorly formed until the initiations of young and vigorous men who will carry their animals totem, hippopotamus, snake, buffalo or shark fin, among others. These masks are worn by men and are fastened on the back by ropes.

Shark fin-shaped mask that the dancer wears vertically on his back, sussy with strings. It is used in initiation rites, mainly in the age class of those who are their bearers. Mask from the island of Canhabaque. Some of these masks, like initiation sticks or other bidjogos objects, usually bear the name of their owner or their bearer. In this mask it says "Merceder Benz", a name that no doubt liked its owner and probably didn't know what he was saying. The author of these lines has had students calling them "Ferié" or "Fêt.Nat.", names searched in the calendar that, by the way, are not included in the Santoral, but they mean "Festival" and "National Festive". It is common in Africa to place the newborn child on behalf of the day that appears on the calendar.