This beautiful sculpture of a man's head was acquired in a remote Middle Sepik River village of Papua New Guinea by a collector who travelled the region in a canoe in 1990. This is not an airport art item. It is similar to the Ancestor Cult Magic figures that were made to add luck in warfare and hunting. Statues such as these are made by the Latmul speakers of the Middle Sepik and East Sepik regions. It is carved out of a medium density hardwood and painted with traditional clay paints. Cowrie shells are inserted into the eye slots. This carving has multiple shallow natural age split lines associated with moisture loss out of aging thick natural boards. Length = 44 cm ; Weight = 1812 gm