Wooden figure of a prisoner

Estimated Value:

1.800 € - 2.800 €

Result:

incl. Premium and VAT

Description:

Sulawesi, South, Tana Toraja, 19th century / early 20th century
H. 74 cm
A rustic-looking statue or sculpture made of brown wood, reminiscent of a long-gone custom. In many parts of the world, including Indonesia, it used to be customary to make offerings on certain occasions. These were usually in the context of the cyclical renewal of life energy. Therefore, human sacrifices were offered on particularly important occasions, e.g. at the burial of high-ranking persons, in connection with vital harvests, in connection with the great festivals that ensured the cohesion of the clans (the living and the dead) and thus the continuity of the clans, and in connection with the important collective rites of passage. In Sulawesi and other areas of Indonesia, these have disappeared since Christianisation or Islamisation or have shifted to animal sacrifices. Although the value of such acts had already shifted under Hindu-Buddhist influences, the sacrifices were then continued as part of ritualised warfare with the taking of heads. This statue depicts a prisoner. For the Toraja, the quadruple spiral on the rectangular base symbolises the path of all life energy to the underworld and - in a new, rededicated form - back, whereby the corresponding processes were moderated by shamans and clan chiefs. The figure wears the üusual yoke or shackle made of wood or rattan on the wrists. The pierced ears indicate that this is a former high-ranking opponent. The static, tense facial expression and posture subtly express the desperation resulting from the situation. At festivals and rituals, these figures represented the prisoners who had long since ceased to be common; slaves who were sacrificed on the village square - usually by being stabbed in the lance, shot with arrows or beheaded. They were also present at burial ceremonies for the same reason. They were usually burnt after the rituals or fell into insignificance.
Collected from an old German private collection since the 1950s

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