Ci wara headdress

This delicate, geometric headdress served as the female element of a pair performed as a public expression of a male initiation association that was responsible for stimulating agricultural productivity. As one half of an ideal union, the female, with a calf carefully balanced on her back, references reproduction and fecundity. Her male partner is defined by the dynamic arc of a mane that evokes the sun’s radiance. The bodies of those wearing the headdresses would be obscured by a costume composed of cascading vegetal fibers, alluding to running water. In performance, the dancers assumed a stooped posture, leaning forward on a pair of batons, which they used to reproduce the motion of tilling soil. The combined references to fertility, sun, water, and earth manifested the necessary elements for a successful harvest. While the headdresses could only be worn by young men, women participated as chorus singers and occasionally entered the dance arena to chase off the lazy farmer character, who served as the antithesis of ci wara.




Ci wara masquerades have evolved over many generations, accruing new sponsorship and interpretations. During the time of the Segu court (ca. 1712–1861), they were one of many theatrical performances and fell under the patronage of an all-male association charged with ensuring agricultural fertility. In later decades, the metaphysical and religious ideas once promulgated by ci wara faded as a result of Islamic reform movements and widespread socioeconomic change in the region. When Al-Hajj ʿUmar Tal conquered Segu in 1861, the city’s ci wara sanctuary was destroyed by his son Amadou and replaced with a mosque. Since the twentieth century, ci wara performances have continued as secular entertainment during communal gatherings, national holidays, and political events. The masquerade remains a cultural icon generally identified with values like a formidable work ethic and superior achievement.