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PACIFIC TRIBAL OLD SEPIK RIVER MASK PAPUA NEW GUINEA PNG EX HONOLULU MUSEUM COL
PACIFIC TRIBAL OLD SEPIK RIVER MASK PAPUA NEW GUINEA PNG EX HONOLULU MUSEUM COL
PACIFIC TRIBAL OLD SEPIK RIVER MASK PAPUA NEW GUINEA PNG EX HONOLULU MUSEUM COL
PACIFIC TRIBAL OLD SEPIK RIVER MASK PAPUA NEW GUINEA PNG EX HONOLULU MUSEUM COL
PACIFIC TRIBAL OLD SEPIK RIVER MASK PAPUA NEW GUINEA PNG EX HONOLULU MUSEUM COL
PACIFIC TRIBAL OLD SEPIK RIVER MASK PAPUA NEW GUINEA PNG EX HONOLULU MUSEUM COL
PACIFIC TRIBAL OLD SEPIK RIVER MASK PAPUA NEW GUINEA PNG EX HONOLULU MUSEUM COL
PACIFIC TRIBAL OLD SEPIK RIVER MASK PAPUA NEW GUINEA PNG EX HONOLULU MUSEUM COL
PACIFIC TRIBAL OLD SEPIK RIVER MASK PAPUA NEW GUINEA PNG EX HONOLULU MUSEUM COL

PACIFIC TRIBAL OLD SEPIK RIVER MASK PAPUA NEW GUINEA PNG EX HONOLULU MUSEUM COL

$ 330

Availability: 100 in stock
  • Original/Reproduction: Original
  • All returns accepted: ReturnsNotAccepted

    Description

    A Superb Sepik River Mask Ornament - Papua New Guine
    a
    Early-Mid 20th Century
    Wood, shell, pigment, patina
    Height: 26.6cm (10.5in)
    PROVENANCE:
    Honolulu Museum of Art, Honolulu HI
    *Documentation on file and can accompany the artwork for historical conservation purposes.
    Description: Sepik ornament of mask form, with cowrie shell (cypraea moneta) inlay eyes, the arrow-shaped nose above an upturned mouth; remnants of white and red ochre pigments, accession number Ed-9128 painted on the reverse
    .
    Provenance: Formerly of the Honolulu Museum of Art Collection (Accession No. ED 9128) and sold to raise funding for the museum. Curatorial Remarks: Good condition with fine patina. Surface wear commensurate with age and use
    .
    The culture of Papua New Guinea (PNG) and surrounding is many-sided and complex. It is estimated that more than 1000 different cultural groups exist in PNG, and most groups have their own language. Because of this diversity, in which they take pride, many different styles of cultural expression have emerged; each group has created its own expressive forms in art, dance, weaponry, costumes, singing, music, architecture and much more. To unify the nation, the language Tok Pisin, once called Neo-Melanesian (or Pidgin English) has evolved as the lingua franca — the medium through which diverse language groups are able to communicate with one another in Parliament, in the news media, and elsewhere. People typically live in villages or dispersed hamlets which rely on the subsistence farming of sweet potatoes and taro. The principal livestock in traditional PNG is the oceanic pig (Sus papuensis). To balance the diet, people of PNG hunt, collect wild plants, or fish — depending on the local environment and mode of subsistence. Those who become skilled at farming, hunting, or fishing — and are generous — earn a great deal of respect in Papua New Guinea. There is a rich and diverse tradition of visual art. In particular, Papua New Guinea is world-famous for carved wooden sculpture: masks, utilitarian objects, canoes, story-boards. Many of the best collections of these are held in overseas museums. Some of the finest New Guinea art served as personal ornaments and were attached to belts or armbands during ritual performance. The serene features of the present head ornament attest to the expressive and remarkable sculptural abilities of the Sepik River region.
    Cf.
    Belt Ornament
    (Accession No.  1985.416.1), Iatmul people,  Papua New Guinea, Middle Sepik River, Ivindo or Sangha River region, late 19th–early 20th century, Gift of Estate of Meta Legat, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York for a comparable example
    .
    *
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