"Malagan" figure
Christie’s Paris, Art Africain et Océanien, 1 décembre 2010, lot 88
Description
wood, light brown patina, small remains of black, red and white paint, tar-like blackish mass at the coiffure, eyes (figure and fish) with shell inlay (Turbo phetoloatus opercula), standing in the mouth of a large fish (shark), dominated by a powerful head with forceful and accentuated cut facial features, the half circular open mouth revealing two rows of strong teeth and a bare tongue, slightly dam., minor missing parts (right arm), cracks, paint rubbed off;
presumably a type of “malanggatsak” figure, representing a powerful image that can inflict harm. Those pieces were probably made to lean against the inner wall of the “malagan” enclosure. The relationship of sharks and humans is a subject of great interest in New Ireland sculpture. Possibly the figure was originally part of a “malagan” post of the vertical type “eikuar”, which was cut subsequently. (Vgl. M. Gunn, 1997, p. 114)