Very old and rare polychrome dance ornament representing a large double-faced face with a troubling presence, the eyes are openwork, the mouth and eyebrows are clearly indicated as well as the nose which is extended by a large "cycladic" arch that comes to encompass and encircle the entire face. The whole is surrounded by a polychrome engraved pattern that spreads like a wave. A few feathers remain, which were planted in holes made for this purpose all along the edge. A part of its balance is still present and allows us to envisage the system of attachment to the costume used by the dancer. See for an example of the same type collected in 1909 in the collections of the Museum für Völkerkunde, Dresden, and exhibited and reproduced in Sepik Arts de La Papouasie-Nouvelle-Guinée, Musée du Quai Branly, 2015 MQB-Skira. Probably Sawos or Iatmul, Middle Sepik, Papua New Guinea Light alstonia (duduye) wood, pigments, woven wood and plant fibers, feathers, missing old wear and accidents, old indigenous restorations, important old oxidation and very nice patina of use. H. 58 cm approximately without the feathers Provenance: - Collected by Pierre Langlois and Marcel Évrard in 1959-60 - Former collection of Marcel Évrard Exhibition and publication : - Oceania at the CRACAP (National Center of Research of Animation and Creation for the Plastic Arts) 1971, fig.29 of the catalog