- 33
Bouclier, Elema, Orokolo, Golfe de Papouasie, Papouasie Nouvelle-Guinée
Description
- Bouclier, Elema, Orokolo, Golfe de Papouasie
- wood
- haut. 88,5 cm
- 34 4/5 in
Provenance
Collection du Lieutenant Général Augustus Henry Lane-Fox Pitt Rivers, Oxford, avant 1899
Pitt Rivers Museum, Oxford (inv. n° 6028)
Collection Stella Lonsdale-Pitt Rivers, Oxford
Collection Kevin Conru, Bruxelles
Collection privée, New York, acquis en 2003
Exhibited
Literature
Condition
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."
Catalogue Note
Hautement symboliques, « les motifs de la pièce se combinent de façon à représenter l’ancêtre totémique inconnu (aualari) du propriétaire du bouclier » (Bell in Peltier, Ombres de Nouvelle Guinée, Arts de la grande île d’Océanie dans les collections Barbier-Muller, 2006, p. 446). Ainsi, tandis que le motif cernant les yeux est lié à l’histoire du clan et à la généalogie de son propriétaire, la dentelure renvoie aux planches de danse utilisées lors des cérémonies, la rangée de chevrons aux nuages et au monde inconnu, et les triangles noirs qui le couronnent, au bandeau de guerrier en dents de cochon et plumes de casoar (Macdonald, Shields of Melanesia, p. 175). Selon Haddon (Decorative Art of British New Guinea, 1894, p. 93), chaque bouclier laua portait un nom lié à la généalogie du guerrier.
Créations aussi rares qu'emblématiques de l'art du golfe de Papouasie, ces boucliers étaient conservés dans les alcôves de la maison des hommes, à l'instar de l'ensemble du corpus magico-religieux. Ceux de plus petite dimension, comme ici, privilégiaient une plus grande mobilité lors des combats, durant lesquels ils étaient suspendus à l'épaule par une cordelette (ici conservée). Leur corpus demeure extrêmement restreint et s'ils entrèrent tôt dans les institutions muséales, très rares sont ceux possédés en main privée. Ce chef-d'œuvre du corpus témoigne magistralement de ce « merveilleux, avec tout ce qu’il suppose de surprise, de faste et de vue fulgurante sur autre chose que ce que nous pouvons connaître, et qui n’a jamais, dans l’art plastique, connu les triomphes qu’il marque avec tels objets océaniens de très haute classe » (Breton, La Clé des champs, 1952, p. 216).
Laua shield, Elema, Orokolo, Papuan Gulf, Papua New Guinea
Acquired from London dealer William Downing Webster and entered into the Pitt Rivers Museum collection in 1899, this laua shield stands out for both its rarity and the striking beauty of its pictorial decoration. Evoking work by Victor Brauner, the face of the ancestor impresses through the dazzling force of its features.
Highly symbolic, "the patterns of the piece combine to represent the unknown (aualari) totemic ancestor of the shield's owner" (Bell in Peltier, Ombres de Nouvelle Guinée, Arts de grande île d’Océanie dans les collections Barbier-Muller, 2006, p. 446). While the motif surrounding the eyes is linked to the history of the clan and the genealogy of its owner, the indentation is a reference to the dance boards used during ceremonies. The row of chevrons refer to clouds and the unknown world, and the black triangles that crown it to the warrior's headband made from pig's teeth and cassowary feathers (Macdonald, Shields of Melanesia, p. 175). According to Haddon (Decorative Art of British New Guinea, 1894, p. 93), each laua shield bore a name related to the genealogy of the warrior.
These shields, creations as rare as they are emblematic of the arts of the Gulf of Papua, were kept in the alcoves of the men's house, alongside the objects of the magical-religious corpus. Smaller examples, such as this one, allowed for greater mobility in combat, during which they were hung off the shoulder with a cord (preserved here). Their corpus remains extremely narrow and, although entered into museum collections early, those held in private hands are very rare. This masterpiece of the corpus attests to the "wonderful, with all that implies in terms of surprise, pomp and dazzling perspective upon something other than what we know, and which has never in the visual arts known the heights it reaches with such high-class Oceanic objects " (Breton, La Clé des champs, 1952, p. 216).