Shell, feather, bone, wood, fabric, clay, natural fibers, and pigments
In the style of the Ramu River region of Papua New Guinea, middle of the 20th C.
Decorative Ramu style mask with cassowary feather
Papua New Guinea style dagger with clay face and bone handle, potentially from a cassowary bird
Ramu style mask dimensions: 20” x 10” x 7.5” (length x width x depth)
Bone dagger dimensions: 18” x 5” x 4” (length x width x depth)
Provenance: New York private collection

This pairing includes a Sepik style bone dagger and a Ramu style mask made in the middle of the 20th century. The bone dagger with face and cassowary feathers is a tourist trade piece done in the style of the Abelam people in the Prince Alexander Mountains of Papua New Guinea. Traditional examples rarely exhibit the head design and are more utilitarian in nature. The mask is imitating a Ramu mask from the Madang Province of Papua New Guinea.

Ramu masks are in the top canon of Oceanic art. Only danced for the most important of ceremonies, these masks represent ancestral spirits. A Ramu mask would not be worn directly on the face, but as part of a towering dance framework (tumbuan) covered in feathers.

These objects are in good condition with visible traces of age and wear. The dagger is 18” x 5” x 4” (length x width x depth). The mask is 20” x 10” x 7.5” (length x width x depth)