Sepik River mask

Mwai Mask, 1900s Melanesia, Papua New Guinea, Iatmul people Wood Purchased from Gallery 43, London with support from the National Fund for Acquisitions, 1965 Museum number 1965-43 This mask was made by the Iatmul, one of the many indigenous peoples of Papua New Guinea. The Iatmul live in the Sepik River region and their art is the most well-represented in the area. However, due to the complexity of their culture and beliefs, the meaning of masks like this one is not obvious to outsiders. It is carved from soft wood and decorated with paint made from natural pigments and charcoal. There are holes pierced down each side with fibre still attached, which would have been used to tie it on. The mask would have been worn along with an elaborate costume during the young men’s initiation and other ritual ceremonies. Ancestor worship was fundamental to the Iatmul people and they believed that ancestral spirits have power over the living. The mask may have represented such a spirit. However, the exaggerated nose suggests a beak. Birds played a major role in the mythologies of the people along the Sepik River and were frequently featured in Iatmul art.