Suspension hook with female figure · Papua New Guinea, Iatmul · ID: 3046190
sold
EUR 2,500
Provenance
Australian Collection, SydneyJohn Giltsoff, Girona, Spain
Size
H: 59,5 cm
H: 23.4 inch
Description
pigments, base
Figural hooks were integral part of men’s houses. The sculptures were hung from the rafters or eves, with valuable foods and personal items hung on their hooks, keeping them away from the numerous vermin.
A second function was the protection the hooks gave as intermediaries to the inhabitant ancestral spirits.