Murik Lakes Mask-Ledoux-New Guinea Art-Oceanic Art
Murik Lakes Mask, brag
Murik Lakes, Coastal Sepik River area, East Sepik Province, Papua New Guinea
Collected 1936 by Louis Pierre Ledoux
Late 19th/early 20th century
17 ⅜” (44.1 cm) in height
While carved with metal tools the reverse shows signs of shell scraping—indicating that both metal and pre-contact methods of carving were at use simultaneously. The eyes are the porcelain rings imported by the Germans prior to 1914. It is nice to see the swirling remains of white pigments on the forehead and cheeks.