Mask of spiritual being "tago"

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Description

helmet-shaped rattan framework, coated with coconut fiber dyed with white pigment, eyes and mouth painted in red and black, the separate worked nose made of wood and fixed by cord, bonnet of red dyed plant fibre material, bind together on top and decorated with cassowary feathers, good condition;
the “tago” is a spiritual being and was displayed to initiates during their period of trial and apprenticeship. The “tago” also seems to have had a judiciary function. In the “tago” cycle, masked dancers took part in a year-long series of ceremonies and events which were repeated only every ten or twelve years.

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Littérature comparée

Meyer, Anthony J.P., Ozeanische Kunst, Vol. I, Köln 1995, p. 158 f.

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