# Headdress (Ago Egungun)

- By: Yoruba (Yoruba; Abeokuta, Nigeria; Coastal West Africa)
- Date: Mid–late 19th century
- Medium: Wood and pigment
- Classification: Mask
- Dimensions: 33.1 × 23.2 × 23.5 cm (13 × 9 1/8 × 9 1/4 in.)
- Culture: Nigeria
- Credit line: Edward E. Ayer Endowment in memory of Charles L. Hutchinson
- Museum: [Art Institute of Chicago](https://www.artic.edu/artworks/31581)
- Rights: [Public domain (CC0)](https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/)
- Picture: https://www.artic.edu/iiif/2/6b5f6522-d540-ef8f-4ee2-0827bada4cbf/full/!1920,1080/0/default.jpg
- Who can see it: Teens profiles and older (museums give no ratings; placed by Invisible Network from the museum's own words)

Egungun, a widespread Yoruba masquerade, is staged to honor the ancestors and the newly deceased, who continue to influence the lives of their kin. Organized at funerals, on family occasions, and during annual or biennial festivals, the different types of egungun are each associated with a distinctive cloth costume, some of which include a wooden mask or headdress. The tufted hairstyle of this example mimics the flap of a hunter’s cap that hides protective medicines.

Description © Art Institute of Chicago, CC BY 4.0