Description

Papua New Guinea, likely East Sepik region, Tago mask. A large ceremonial mask of elongated oval form, constructed with a painted bark or fiber-covered face, natural fiber coiffure, and attached shell ornaments. The face is decorated in white, black, and reddish-brown pigments, with sharply angled eye motifs, a projecting long nose, and a lower crescentic arrangement of shell elements secured at the mouth area. The upper section is surmounted by a rounded fiber headdress bound with dark cord and finished with a tuft of natural fiber.

The reverse shows the open interior construction, with woven and fiber elements visible behind the painted face. Pendant ornaments hang at the sides, incorporating shell, fiber wrapping, and dark ring elements. The mask is mounted on a later black display stand.

Height: 27 in. (68.6 cm)Width: 10 in. (25.4 cm)Depth: 11 in. (27.9 cm)

Condition

pigment loss, surface abrasions, fraying and losses to fiber elements, splitting and lifting to bark or surface covering, wear to shell ornaments, and scattered losses throughout. Mounted on a later display stand.

Buyer's Premium

25%

Tago Mask, PNG

Lot 0373

Estimate $400-$800Jun 25, 2026, 1:00 PM EDT

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Ethnographic Art Jewelry and Antiquities

Jun 25, 2026 1:00 PM EDT

Brea, CA, United States

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