ANCESTOR FIGURES, Sepik River, PNG

Chris Boylan Oceanic Art

Three Figures, Sepik River region, Papua New Guinea

a)    59 x 11 x 9cm     $ 1,000      

b)    48 x 10 x 10cm    $ 1,200      

c)     48 x 13 x 14cm    $  800

Ancestor Figures are found along the major regions of the Lower and Middle Sepik River.

They are powerful, spiritually charged sculptures that serve as intermediaries between the living and the spirit world. The most important ancestor figures are housed in men's ceremonial houses while smaller and lesser examples were kept in houses as protection against malevolent forces.

a)    This skeleton-like figure is from the Iatmul people of the Middle Sepik. They were renowned for warfare and, above all, cannibalism. Skulls were always important elements of Iatmul culture.

b)    A cylindrical abstract figure from the Mundugumor people of the Lower Sepik River. It has a geometric representation of the human (ancestral) form, with heads at top and bottom. Traces of red and blue paint survive, imparting a subtle liveliness to this figure.

c)    A bold figurative sculpture,  from the Mundugumor of the Yuat River, Lower Sepik River. The head is large, projecting far forward, with heavy brows, deep-set eyes and large nose and ear (one of the ears is missing, broken long ago). The figure stands straight, almost at attention, with the strong form and demeanour typical of Mundugumor sculpture.

$1,000.00

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