Ancestor mask

Tambunam people, PNG

29 inches, wood, pigment, shells, raffia

Masks like this are used in boy’s initiation ceremonies in villages from the Middle Sepik River area. The Tanbunam instruct the initiates in the true names of the spirits and in their uses. Only adult men can summon the power of the spirits. The distinctive style of this mask is immediately recognized as a classic New Guinean form. Almost new condition.

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