Malagan ceremonies are a means by which whole communities can express their reverence for the deceased. It is not a time of grief but a festival for honouring the dead. Malagan carvings are owned by particular clans and are made for ceremonies by specially commissioned carvers. The "ges" mask, a specific type of Malagan mask, represents the spiritual double or "bush spirit" of an individual, particularly the deceased, and refers to a type of mask used in the Malagan ceremonies of Northern New Ireland, Papua New Guinea, that represents the spiritual double of an individual, often a deceased ancestor, and is used to honor the dead and ward off malevolent spirits.

Rare ges mask for
malagan ceremonies
wood, pigment, shell, fibers
19th century
Papua New Guinea - Bismarck
Archipelago - New Ireland

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