Figure "kakame" ·  Papua New Guinea - Golf, Kerewo, Damaibari Village · ID: 3035572

Description

light wood, middle brown patina, white pigment, flat body with the arms close to the body, rising form short legs with delicate shanks and feet, the neckless head with drilled nose hole, a drilling in the back is supposed to be used for fixing the figure on a stick, slightly dam., cracks around the mouth, missing part (right foot), paint rubbed off, heavy metal socle;
the figure was collected by Thomas Schultze-Westrum on the peninsula between Bevan Sound and Paia Inlet in the beginning of the 1966 collecting trip. A field inventory number of Schultze-Westrum, although hardly readable on the left side of the neck: “25.1.66”
The Kerewo are the most prolific and proficient producers of art works in the entire Gulf area. They are especially known for their “gope” ancestor boards or the “agiba” skull racks. From figural sculpture we know the “imuni”, twisted and strangely formed branches, carved to represent spirit figures. The “kakame” figures are a further developement of the “imuni”.