Prow of a ritual canoe with ornament "munkuris" or "maan" · Papua New Guinea - Trobriand Islands, Massim · ID: 3033053
sold
EUR 4,000
Size
L: 180 cm
H: 88 cm
L: 70.9 inch
H: 34.6 inch
Description
wood, small remains of polychrome pigments (red, white, black), elongated slender prow, decorated with accurate incised curved ornaments, canoe-prow ornament with curled volute-motifs, slightly dam., cracks, traces of weathering, on base;
prow ornaments should give magical and spiritual protection to the canoe. The populations of the Massim Area principally maritime people, are great sailors capable of the long and arduous canoe trips across the open seas demanded by the all-important “kula” inter-island trading system.
Comparing literature
Meyer, Anthony J.P., Ozeanische Kunst, Vol. I, Köln 1995, p. 143