Pair of ancestral figures "itara" · Indonesia - Timor-Leste, Ataúro Island · ID: 3052619
Starting price
EUR 4,000
Estimated price
EUR 8,000
Provenance
Italian Private CollectionZemanek-Münster, Würzburg, Germany, 19 June 2010, lot 89
Erik Farrow, San Rafael, USA
Belgian Collection
Size
H: 15 cm & 16 cm
H: 5.9 inch & 6.3 inch
Description
wood, pigments, plant fibre, base
The traditional woodcarving of Ataúro remained virtually unknown in the West until the early 1970s.
Carved in male–female pairs, the “itara” represent ancestral couples — the founders of specific families and lineages. The figures were kept, together with other sacred objects, in the “ruma-pera’ik”, the house of the tribal chief.
The role of the “itara” within the religious practices of Ataúro remains insufficiently documented. According to oral tradition, these figures were employed in ritual acts intended to identify thieves
Comparing literature
Kjellgren, Eric, Oceania: Art of the Pacific Islands in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York 2007, p. 246 f.