CLAY HEAD LOWER SEPIK RIVER, EAST SEPIK PROVINCE, PAPUA NEW GUINEA

unusually modelled and combined with characteristics of the head of a human and a bird, possibly a cassowary, pierced at one end with an aperture, the tactile surface accented with geometric and raised motifs detailed with multi-coloured pigment, metal stand

A private Belgian collection, acquired from Galerie Voyageurs & Curieux, Paris.

Galerie Voyageurs & Curieux, Art de Papouasie Nouvelle-Guinée, Paris, 2010, p. 30, pl. 25.

Excellent condition overall. Deep patina showing extensive use within the culture. The encrusted pigments refreshed throughout the use of the piece, in accordance with traditional use within the culture. The underside of the neck shows development of a great deal of patina, indicating the head was used extensively after it was separated from the original ritual vessel.
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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."

This rare sculpture combines characteristics of the head of a human and a bird, perhaps a cassowary, indigenous to Papua New Guinea. Its function is unclear; a related clay head, pierced at the top with a suspension hole and perhaps worn as an amulet, is in the National Gallery of Australia (NGA 1971.157). The offered head may have been conceived as a stopper for a sacred vessel used ritually during important feasts, and an interesting comparison may be made with a clay vessel with two faces of similar style which project from the sides, held in the Jolika collection at the Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco (New Guinea Art: Masterpieces from the Jolika Collection, Vol. 1, p 138, no. 114).

The head shows the high level of artistic production in the traditional arts of Papua New Guinea, executed with exquisite care. Typical of the carvers in the Lower Sepik River area, the surface has been enriched by a panoply of complex raised and incised motifs which enhance the object’s tactile quality.