At the center of the masking traditions in the Dan region was the survival and thriving of the community. Not a single aspect of village life remained untouched by the interference of masks. Their wooden face masks did not depict ancestors, neither were they portraits. Masked performers impersonated spirits, connecting humans with the supernatural. These beings occasionally left their hideout in the woods to dispel malign forces from the village and to chastise, exhort, educate, or entertain its inhabitants. As every mask could fulfill different roles within the community, it is impossible to identify the function of a mask based solely on its shape. Moreover, the status and function of these masks could change during the life of their owner. Just as a person could climb the social ladder, so too a mask might ascend in rank. Even after the death of their owner, a mask kept fulfilling a ritual role. It would be placed in a shrine and served as a direct link with the ancestor. Living in the afterworld, he was closer to the supernatural and could exert his influence to bless his descendants. The mask would never dance again and as a shrine object would frequently be coated with libations. Through time those sacrifices interacted with the wooden surface of the mask, resulting in the pitted skin the mask now displays.