Shipping
African Origins ship dozens of international orders every week to every corner of the globe. We generally use Australia Post, a reliable, economic and fast service which also features online tracking. For multiple orders weighing over five kilograms we ship or via International Air Courier which also features online tracking. Please feel free to contact us directly with your country and zip code if you have any questions or special requirements regarding shipping or wish to obtain a quote for shipping to your area. We are happy to calculate combined postage quotes for multiple items.
Returns
African Origins sells tribal objects which have been used, in some cases, for many, many years. We ask that you carefully study the photographs relating to each object prior to committing to purchase. In the event that you are unhappy with your purchase for any reason, we accept refunds within seven days of purchase. We offer a full refund or a credit note valid for twelve months, which ever you prefer. Return postage is paid by the purchaser in all cases.
About African Origins
African Origins has been trading online since 2007. We are constantly on the look out for interesting objects to add to our collection. Our tribal collection is sourced from tribal dealers,auction houses, private collections the world over and also collected in the field.. Where possible, we will specify the provenance of important individual tribal objects.
Feedback
The success of African Origins depends on positive feedback. If you are happy with your purchase, please leave positive feedback and we will do the same for you. If you are not happy, please contact us first before leaving negative feedback and we will do all within our power to rectify the problem.
The Aduma made animal vabo masks – buffalo, monkey, elephant, leopard, and so on and also female masks. The masks would dance at the time of sowing, harvesting, funerals, or other important events. Vabo masquerades punish antisocial behavior and chase away criminals, and individual names given to each male vabo mask underscore their aggressive qualities. They also intervene in initiation rites. Priests, whose duties were hereditary, kept the masks in the sanctuary.
This tribe is located in the Ogooue River region in Gabon. The Aduma are the great boatmen of the Ogooue. They believe in a God who made the world, in an immortal soul and in retribution for evil; they worship spirits and ghosts, and are under the sway of sorcerers and secret societies, to which even the authority of their chiefs must yield. Remarkable are their masks with flat surface for face, domed forehead, an angular nose, an interesting interplay of flat, convex, and angular forms. These masks are mostly polychrome, some with a painted design pattern. For the last half-century these masks have been used for celebratory dances associated with the major social rituals. Their former role is less well documented.