这本插图精美的对刚果民主共和国的面具和面具仪式探索性著作展示了18至20世纪130多个出色的木质面具。这些物件在视觉上令人惊叹并具有精神上的吸引力，将佩戴者与其祖先联系在一起，并且是用于仪式表演的精美服装的一部分。本书包括一些私人珍藏的非洲艺术品，其中包括来自11个不同风格区域的面具：Ukongo，Ukwango，Ukete，Ukuba，Urunda，Uruwa，Utanganyika，Umaniema，Uituri，Ubangi和Umongo。这些面具展示了材料，设计和工艺的千差万别，反映了整个刚果地区广泛的自然资源，并阐明了当地居民独特的信仰体系。通俗易懂且内容丰富的文章提供了对这些非凡对象的洞察力，而新颖的摄影作品和档案图片也为该作品增添了活力，这些图像显示了20世纪初刚果对面具的礼仪性使用。

This splendid illustrated exploration of masks and masking ceremonies from the Democratic Republic of the Congo presents more than 130 outstanding wooden masks dating from the 18th to the 20th century. Visually stunning and spiritually charged, these objects connected wearers with their ancestors and were part of elaborate costumes used in ritual performances. Including some of the finest works of African art in private hands, this volume features masks from eleven distinct stylistic zones: Ukongo, Ukwango, Ukete, Ukuba, Urunda, Uruwa, Utanganyika, Umaniema, Uituri, Ubangi, and Umongo. Displaying an enormous diversity of materials, design, and craftsmanship, these masks reflect the wide range of natural resources available throughout the Congo region and illuminate the unique belief systems of local populations. Accessible and informative essays provide insight into these extraordinary objects and are enlivened by both new photography and archival images showing the ceremonial use of masks in early 20th-century Congo.