Mask Item Number: 3439/2 from the MOA: University of British Columbia

Description

Carved and painted wood mask. The mask is a long oval that comes to points at the top and bottom of the face. The nose tapers to a pointed tip. The eyes are two inlaid cowrie shells within a painted black area. At the top centre of the head is a hole with a short length of braided plant fibre tied looped through.

Narrative

Dr. Frits Bossen was 28 years old when he was posted to Samoa, in 1973, as a veterinarian on a training assignment with the FAO/UNDP. While there he also traveled to other islands in the area. In the early 1980s he traveled through the South Pacific again.