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Description

Large dance mask (part a). The wooden mask is oval-shaped, and painted black. Rectangular holes are cut for both the eyes and mouth. Surrounding the mask is a large amount of plant material simulating hair, which is attached to both the mask and wooden frame. The mask is adorned with a headdress consisting of a red woven band, three rows of small circular shells, a single row of cone shells, the remnants of a row of red feathers, and topped with rows of black feathers. A wide strap of plant fibre extends back around the head, and is decorated by four shells on each end. A rattan frame extends down to each side of the mask, with woven fibre and strings of shells attached. Three similar dance wands (parts b-d) of red feathers and bird skin, one of which is still mounted on a wooden handle (part b). An ornament (part e), composed of three pieces that are tied together - a bundle of black feathers, a wrapped stick with a piece of bone, feathers and metal, and another pointed stick piercing a ball-like decoration.

Narrative

Collected by Jack Lieber in Papua New Guinea, Eastern Highlands Division, from August 1970 - June 1972. He was researching village communities in and around Goroka, where he was lecturing under the auspices of UNESCO at the Goroka Teachers College.