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• Auction House:
  Theodore Bruce
• Sale Name:
  Timed Online Auction | The Todd Barlin Collection of Oceanic African & Asian Art
• Sale Date:
  05 Dec 2022 ~ 6pm (AEDT)
• Lot #:
  9033
• Lot Description:
  A Fine Old and Used Ceremonially Asmat Manama Dance Costume, Irogo Village. Remote NW Asmat, West Papua Irian Jaya Indonesia
  the wood figure on the top of this basketry costume is in the form of a stylized turtle called Manama but it represents an ancient ancestor of the Asmat people.
  H 160 cm
• Provenance:
  Todd Barlin Field Collected in 1986
• Notes:
  The Jipae Ceremony is preformed to release the spirits of the recently deceased so that their spirits can move on to the afterlife but with these dance costumes there is always one Manama costume being danced; the other type of costumes also called Jipae are the recently deceased spirits. The ceremony lasts several months (the costumes make occasional appearances at the front of the special made ceremonial house or Jeu). At the end of the ceremony, they costume disappear into the jungle never to be seen again (they are left in the trees to decay naturally). The Asmat people's main myth is that humans were made from wood/trees. According to the creation myth, the Asmat people believe that they are the descendant of Fumeripits a creator being that was so lonely that he carved statues out of wood, he then carved a drum and on one day, he played the drum and sung and the wood figures started to come to life. This is the beginning of the Asmat people. That is why trees in the forest are like brothers because the Asmat were created from trees by Fumeripits. Wood carving is the continuation of the Asmat creation myth. This Manama Costume was collected by Todd Barlin in 1986 and was part of a larger field collection of objects that are now mainly in museums collections including, The Musee Du Quai Branly in Paris. The photo in the village is of a similar Costumes that were acquired on the same time.
• Estimate:
  A$600 - 1,200
• Realised Price:
  *****
  

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• Category:
  Tribal

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