What Is The Muti Wa Lipiko Mask?

The Makonde people, who inhabit the secluded Mueda Plateau in northern Mozambique and live along the Lukuledi River in Southeast Tanzania, apply their expertise in art to different distinct masks that symbolize a multitude of traditions (Bortolot 9). Commonly made of wood, pigment, and hair, these masks are the foundation to hard work, courage, and fortitude, all characteristics a man and woman entering the adult society should acquire. Through initiations and rituals, young men and women become a symbolic body of art that defines the attributes and bravery of a Makonde. The Muti wa Lipiko Mask was used in tribal ceremonies to praise young men and women after concluding their coming of age customs and rituals.
The Makonde Mask is from Tanzania
In such an area where they inhabit, there are two different seasons that mark their most important duties, wet and dry (ibid). During the wet season, planting and harvesting crops is their most important duty that leaves them no spare time for non-cultivation activities (ibid). However, the dry season allots plenty of time for entertaining activities such as the rituals and ceremonies and the creation of the masks (ibid). Helmet masks, which are frequently worn during ceremonies, are referred to as midimu
Made with thin, lightweight wood and having hair attached along with scarifications that were represented by strips of smoked beeswax, the Lipiko masks were fundamental to the coming of age rituals in boys and girls (ibid). Emblematic scarifications contained zigzags, lines, and angles that are symmetrical along the face, with an occasional dot (Schneider 27). The zigzags and lines were displayed along the chin, the area above the mouth, and across the cheeks and nose (ibid). The process of scarification at boys commencements generally costs twenty cents and symbolized courage and sacrifice, both qualities a Makonde man should embody (Schneider 28). In conjunction with the tribal scarifications, the shaping and filing of teeth, was quintessential to initiation (ibid). The Makonde peoples believed the fracturing of teeth accentuated women’s beauty and symbolized courage for men (ibid). A piece of wood is placed in between teeth while an older Makonde carefully uses a sharp knife to chisel away the tooth in a desirable manner, showcasing why the Muti wa lipiko Mask has wood in place of teeth (Schneider 30).
Along with the wood replacement of teeth on the mask, the Muti wa Lipiko Mask acquired scarifications in a zigzag pattern along the chin, nose, and cheeks during the initiation festivals as an emblematic sign of courage and sacrifice. Through rituals