The Nafana people of the Ivory Coast (Cote d'Ivoire) created the Bedu association around 1930. Bedu masks can range up to almost nine feet tall and weigh as much as 110 pounds. They are danced by athletic young men with amazing agility and grace. They are considered to have an apotropaic function, and they are used to purify the village of evil forces. They usually appear in male and female pairs at funeral rites and during the month-long harvest festivals (zaurau). Male masks are usually indicated by circular horns at the top above the face, while females masks are typically indicated by a more elaborate disk-shaped superstructure. -Hahner-Herzog/Kecskesi/Vajda