Senufo Style Carved Wooden Kpelie Mask, West Africa

A carved wooden mask in the Kpelie style, traditionally associated with the Senufo people of West Africa, primarily from the Ivory Coast, Mali, and Burkina Faso. The mask features a characteristic elongated face with narrow slit eyes, a long slender nose, and a small protruding mouth. It is decorated with typical symbolic projections, including two pairs of rectangular lateral flanges with incised geometric linear patterns, a pair of curved horn-like structures at the top, and a handle-like projection extending from the chin. The piece is carved from a single block of dark wood and is covered in a dense, mottled, and heavily encrusted brown and tan patina. The reverse is hollowed out and shows some smoothing to the wood surface. A small modern metal tack is visible on the interior lower section.