A Mano Mask, Liberia

of delicate proportions, the pointed chin with frowning mouth beneath a small nose bisecting the drooping pierced eyes surmounted by a domed forehead and framed by two cresecent shaped ears; fine blackened patina with residue.

Collected in situ  by Dr. George Harley
Acquired by the present owner from the above, 1961

good condition overall; ancient break in front of right ear, with small holes indicating repair in the field, later detached and reattached with western glue, reportedly executed by Dr. Harley himself; fine blackened patina with residue.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The mask was collected by Dr. George Harley (1894-1966) who was a medical missionary in Ganta, Liberia from 1926-1962. During this time he acquired over one thousand masks from the region. A few hundred, particularly those collected before 1946, went to the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology at Harvard University; others went to private collectors. Harley was not a professional art historian or anthropologist but acquired a lot of practical knowledge through his extended stays in Liberia. In 1941 he publsihed Notes on the Poro in Liberia, followed by his second book Masks as Agents of Social Control in Northeast Liberia in 1950. While much of the information Harley provided has been disputed by later scholarship, his information nevertheless builds much of the material foundation for our knowledge of Dan and Mano masks and their function within the secret societies. Harley was working and interviewing informants during a time when there was still a relatively strong memory of Poro society practices before they began to change under Western influence. See Wells (1977: 22-27) for further discussion.