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• Auction House:
  Mossgreen
• Sale Name:
  Australian Indigenous & Oceanic Art
• Sale Date:
  22 Jul 2014 ~ 6.30pm (Part 1 - Lots 1 - 198)
  23 Jul 2014 ~ 2.30pm (Part 2 - Lots 199 - 331)
• Lot #:
  41
• Lot Description:
  Lofty (Nabardayal) Nadjamerrek
  (1926-2009)
  Untitled (Crocodile) (circa 1970)
  natural earth pigments on eucalyptus bark
  106 x 43 cm
• Provenance:
  Painted in the Gunbalanya (Oenpelli) region, Northern Territory; Aboriginal Arts Australia, Western Australia (P5034 OETTT); Private Collection, Sydney
• Notes:
  The painting bears the artist's name and descriptive notes verso that read, "The artist has depicted his 'Dreaming' crocodile, which is the most important of his paintings. Crocodile is his power totem, and the design and colours are sacred to him and must not be used by any other person. In ceremonies, his body is painted with a similar design. If the ceremony is Maraiin (secret and sacred), a wooden carving of a crocodile is made and painted in the same way, and exhibited only to chosen men. There is great power in the tail of the crocodile dreaming, and the design here is different to the rest of the painting. There are several myths connected with the crocodile. People living in the Liverpool River, which is the artist's homeland centre, believe that the split in the Liverpool Ranges was caused by the first crocodile eating its way through a solid mountain to get to the sea. Another relates that crocodile was first a man who was an excellent spear maker. Another man wanted to steal the spears and crept up near him, then hurled spears at him. In great pain the spear maker fled into the river and changed into a crocodile. The barbs along its tail are the spears embedded in the man's body."
• Estimate:
  A$7,000 - 10,000
• Realised Price:
  *****
  

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• Category:
  Art

This Sale has been held and this item is no longer available. Details are provided for information purposes only.