Helmet Mask
date: label: Accession Date
content: 28 Apr 1994
label: Collection Date
content: 1970's
name: label: Collector
content: George C. McGhee
label: Donor Name
content: George C. McGhee
notes: label: Notes
content: THREE DIMENSION WITH FOUR IDENTICAL FACES, EACH FACING IN A DIFFERENT DIRECTION; HELMUT IS CONE SHAPED WITH 4.23 CM. "STICKS" JUTTING UPWARD AT AN ANGLE AT THE LEVEL OF THE EYES; PIG TUSKS JUT OUT FROM THE CORNER OF THE MOUTH UPWARD AT AN ANGLE UNDER THE EYE, FORMING AN ARCH; PIECE IS ENTIRELY PIGMENTED IN BLACK, WHITE AND DARK OCHRE PIGMENTS; THE RAISED FEATURES ARE OUTLINED IN WHITE PIGMENT AND A DARK OCHRE STRIPE MARKS EACH FACE FROM THE CROWN TO THE CHIN; THE FOUR PROTRUDING "STICKS" ARE EACH PIGMENTED ON ONE SIDE WITH DARK OCHRE AND WHITE. NOTE: THREE OF THE PIG TUSKS ARE COMING UNATTACHED FROM THE PIECE ON BOTH SIDES. ATTACHED TAG READS: "ORIGIN: TOMMAN ISLAND MADE BY MAGI IN TOMMAN: NAMBATINAVI; DURING THE NELANGVAL DANCES OF THE NALAWAN CEREMONIES (GRADE TAKING RITUAL) MEN COVER THEIR BODIES WITH BANANA LEAVES AND WEAR THIS MASK AS A HEADDRESS AND SO APPEAR TALLER." NOTE: I SUSPECT THIS WAS WORN ON TOP OF THE HEAD BECAUSE THERE ARE NO HOLES IN IT FOR SEEING OR BREATHING. (CATHERINE RHODES, CATALOGUER, 1996).
label: Record Last Modified
content: 2 Dec 2014
label: Specimen Count
content: 1
place: label: Place
content: Tomman Island, Malampa Province, Vanuatu, Melanesia
topic: label: Topic
content: Ethnology
setName: label: See more items in
content: Anthropology
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: NMNH - Anthropology Dept.
identifier: label: Accession Number
content: 390923
label: USNM Number
content: E427297-0
objectType: label: Object Type
content: Mask
physicalDescription: label: Length - Object
content: 29 cm
label: Width - Object
content: 32 cm
label: Height - Object
content: 32.5 cm