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• Auction House:
  Mossgreen
• Sale Name:
  The Marc & Elena Pinto Collection
• Sale Date:
  20 May 2015 ~ 6.30pm
• Lot #:
  43
• Lot Description:
  Three Carved Pearl Shells (Riji Jakoli)
  Western Australia (early-mid twentieth century)
  carved pearl shell and natural earth pigments
  13.5 cm; 16.1 cm; 16.6 cm long (3)
• Provenance:
  Private Collection, Alice Springs (1975-2000); Private Collection, Queensland; The Marc and Elena Pinto Collection, Perth
• Notes:
  Pearl shell valves, originating in the west Kimberley, and engraved by Aboriginal artists with either geometric designs or naturalistic depictions of people, flora and fauna, are among the most beautiful Indigenous art forms found in Australia. Known in the Kimberley as jakoli or riji, depending on the area in which they are found, they are also known more widely as longka-longka - a central Australian term. The gleaming shells, usually shaped into oval or round forms, were usually worn as pendants or hanging from belts of spun hair string. In many parts of the Kimberley they marked the ceremonial status of a young man. After use in this manner they often formed valuable items of exchange, often being traded to people far across the continent. Kimberley pearl shells have been found in Arnhem Land, western Queensland and on the coast of the Southern Ocean in South Australia. The shining nacreous surface immediately links pearl shell with the ubiquitous Rainbow Serpents and associated aqueous symbolism. The flashing reflects the lightning that precedes the monsoonal storms, the softer tones, the surface of pools of water, or the flow of a stream, or the play of colour on the skins of the Rainbow Snake. Consequently pearl shell plays a large role in rainmaking and the control of storms, lightning and other atmospheric phenomena in many traditionally oriented aboriginal communities. Many of the geometric designs engraved on pearl shells, meanders, particularly sets of parallel lines, sometimes organised as zigzags, are said to represent flowing streams, the ruffle of wind across the surface of water, or marks left in the sand as the tide recedes. Other, more complex mazes, masterpieces of design layout and construction may represent ancestral figures or their pathways across the landscape. Naturalistic images, range from the simple, individual images of flora and fauna to detailed scenes that may be historical records of events, or depictions of traditional mythology in a contemporary manner. These three shells present a series of designs including simple and complex meanders and a finely executed interlocking key design in which the various elements nest within one another. Kim Akerman
• Estimate:
  A$4,000 - 6,000
• 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.