Ancestor figure with skull, misango

Estimated Value:

4.000 € - 6.000 €

Result:

incl. Premium and VAT

Description:

Papua New Guinea, Middle Sepik, Iatmul culture, early 20th ct.
H. 215 cm
Wooden sculpture in a standing posture, standing on a double-hook form extending on both sides, male (with penis), hanging arms in a static posture. The navel area is carved with a four-pointed star motif in low relief. On the neck sits a human skull covered in clay, painted in ochre and lime colour. The top of the head is applied with human hair. Pronounced shins, bracelets made of textile fibre. The compositional focus of the figure is on the head; the sculpture recedes into the background. Wood, bones, shells, human hair, pig's tusk, viba (clay and latex mass).
From an important South German private collection, collected from 1975 onwards, old copy of a Drouot Estimation voucher with Polaroid photos probably preserved from the 1980s or 1990s
The Iatmul are known for their over-modelled misango ancestral skulls. These could be made from the skulls of deceased men, women and children. For the Iatmul, the skulls of their ancestors manifested life force that served to preserve their own community. To demonstrate their power, they were presented publicly on certain occasions. The deceased was first buried and the skull was removed from the grave after several months or years. If soft parts were still present at this point, they were removed, buried separately and the skull was then smoked. The lower jaw was tied to the skull with rattan. A paste called yiba, which can also be found on various Iatmul masks, was used for the subsequent remodelling. This consists of red clay, the latex of various trees and togaso oil (an exudate of Campnosperma brevipetiolatum and / or C. coriacea), other plant materials and lime. The openings of the skull were closed with the mass or light wood and the facial features were modelled portrait-like from memory or after similar-looking relatives. The eyes were replaced with snail shells, and additional snail shells could be used on the forehead. Particular emphasis was placed on the nose, which could be moulded with a piece of rattan or wood or made from the modelling clay. Hair, which could come from the deceased's brother, peers in the village or the deceased himself, was inserted into the mass at the back of the head. During the following night in the men's house, the skull was examined by the spirit of the deceased, according to Iatmul belief. The parts that the spirit deemed unsuitable were found destroyed in the morning. If this was the case, the skull had to be repainted until the spirit of the dead man was satisfied. The painting was done after two days of drying with black, white, red and brown paint. Black was made from earth containing manganese, charcoal, soot or charred plants, white from coloured earth and burnt shell limestone, while red and brown were obtained from coloured earth. The colours of the materials used have symbolic meanings. Red and brown are associated with blood, but also with the colour of the dead person's skin. White stands for semen. According to Iatmul beliefs, the flesh and blood of a child are formed from the mother's blood, while the father's sperm form the bones. Maternal components are added to the paternal bone structure in the over-modelling process. For the Iatmul, white is also associated with the land of the dead, as dark-skinned people fade with rigor mortis. White ornamentation was used for men, black for women. The colouring could correspond to that worn by the deceased during their lifetime. In the 1930s, the colonial government banned secondary burials and thus also the production of over-modelled skulls. The exact rituals and knowledge of the materials used to make the skulls were subsequently lost due to progressive cultural change and the influence of traders and missionaries. The members of the Iatmul groups live along the Middle Sepik, which at 1,100 kilometres is the longest river in Papua New Guinea. The term ‘Iatmul’ goes back to the English anthropologist Gregory Bateson and is not originally a self-designation, but has been adopted - Work of museum quality and significance in good condition
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