This is an ancient Abelam wood yam mask, "saklapik" from Wagaikam Village. Like all yam masks this piece would have adorned the top of a ritually-grown long yam during its public presentation and subsequent exchange. The yam mask both honors and recognizes the ancestral spirit’s role in enabling the long yam to achieve its often amazing length. This particular example is very old, carved from a hardwood, has the pierced nasal septum and ears of an early example and has the thick surface from layer upon layer of pigment. The reverse too shows a dark brown aged patina. The mask is 13 ¼" in height, dates to around 1910. sold