Overmodeled skull ·  Papua New Guinea - Sepik · ID: 3034753

Description

overmodeled with a clay-like mass, painted in black, small traces of original painting, coiffure of real hair, nassa snails, min. dam., small missing parts, slight traces of abrasion;
in overmodelling the ancestors skull, the spirit and vitality should return and support the living descendants with its power. They were kept on special shelves in the men’s house, where women and children were not allowed to see them. Just on special occasions, like remembrance ceremonies, they were adorned and displayed in public.

Comparing literature

Aumann, Georg, Kunst und Kunsthandwerk aus Neu Guinea, Coburg 1986, p. 12