PREFACE

The main purpose of this book is to enable a large portion of the public to discover the artistic patrimony kept in our museums in Cameroun. Up to now, no work of this kind and dimensions has been achieved in view of introducing the public with the cultural and artistic specimen of our museums. To create this book, thefirst of a forthcoming serie, we have heen supported by the government of Cameroon who is very interested in protecting and broad - casting our cullural patrimony.

In this work we do not pretend to offer the public an analysis of all the aspects: aesthetic, socio-cultural, technical of Camerounese art. Our only ambition is to enable the public to be aware of the existence of our cultural patrinzony. We do hope that starling from there anyone can give to this basis of our culture its real importance. Being aware of the value of these objects, we will also be able to protect them against the pilferage which is very common today.

Nowadays all over the world, cultural identity of the nations has a real importance. African art is the origin of this trend, its aimn is to show the real face of Africa always thoughtful and smiling. African art is there to illustrate the African cosmogony in that continent which is the melting pot of civilizations. The art born from Africa itself is the expression of the human intelligence in its perfection.