Python Spirit On The Baga Coast A Scientific And Art Historical Investigation

This study of the wooden serpent headdresses of the Baga people of Guinea is the fruit of collaboration between the author, an art historian, and specialists from a variety of backgrounds, including eminent scientists.

The book begins with an in-depth study of the ethnological and historical evidence of the snake masquerade among the Baga of Guinea, during which a huge figure representing a wooden python is carried on the head. Never observed or photographed by outsiders, the snake masquerade disappeared in the 1950s, along with most ritual performances, after an Islamic jihad introduced strict bans on indigenous religions.

The ritual context is followed by an in-depth analysis of the snake masquerade figurines that exist today in collections in Europe, America and Africa, as well as other representations of the python in the ritual art of the region.

The final sections present contributions from art historians, dealers, collectors and curators, as well as scientific examinations by specialists in botany, chemistry, physics, entomology and conservation.