This is a very fine and elegant wood yam mask from the Abelam culture of Papua New Guinea. Of unusual form, this one does not have the triangular headdress or beard that adorns 99% of Abelam wood yam masks. Thus the ancestral face here is pleasingly round with simple, clear lines. The mask is very old as evidenced by the deeply pierced nasal septum and aged patina on the reverse. Wood yam masks like this are called "saklapik" in the West Yangoru area where they are found. This example is 14" in height, dates to the 1930s. sold