Ancestor spirit mask ·  Papouasie-Nouvelle-Guinée - Sepik · ID: 3034289

Description

wood, middle brown patina, nose with pierced septum, the facial plane entirely coated with incised curved ornaments, on top and at the bottom carved with crocodile heads, small birds originally on both sides (now missing on the right), slightly dam., missing parts (right ear), paint rubbed off;
in the Sepik area, it is generally accepted that long pointed noses represent spiritual beings while short naturalistic ones portray true ancestors.