Description:

Papua New Guinea, Southern Coastal region, ca. 1960s. Hand-carved from a single piece of wood, an early skull rack known as an "agiba" depicting a stylized human figure with extensive decoration adorning the face and body and one plug of raffia hair on the left side of the head. Agibas like this example were traditionally used to store the skulls of enemies which were believed to contain power and given this, were thought to benefit the village community. See a similar example in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (M.2008.66.20a-d). Size: 9.125" W x 25.5" H (23.2 cm x 64.8 cm)

Provenance: private J.H. collection, Beaverton, Oregon, USA, acquired in May 2013; ex-Dieter Schnurr Tribal Arts, Cologne, Germany; ex-Gallery for Tribal Art, Australia; ex-Peter J. Eddowes collection. Mr. Eddowes was stationed near Rabaul in East New Britain from 1961 onwards and was the Officer in Charge of Wood Utilisation and Marketing at the Papua New Guinea Forest Products Research Centre from 1965 to 1981. During his time in New Guinea Mr. Eddowes amassed a substantial collection of Gulf Art.

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#151979

  • Condition: One raffia hear plug missing. Otherwise intact. Expected surface wear commensurate with age, and the pigmentation has muted slightly with age but is still rather vivid.

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January 30, 2020 8:00 AM MST
Louisville, CO, US

Artemis Fine Arts

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