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Malangan figure
New Ireland
End of 19th century
76 cm
Wood, vegetable fibre, pigment and shell (turbo petholatus opercula)
On the island of New Ireland, a variety of wooden masks, decorative boards, and sculptures are produced for use in malangan, the complex commemoration ceremonies of central social significance held to honour and bid farewell to the dead. Special importance is accorded to carved works that represent the deceased persons and their life force.
Provenance
Colonial collection, Leipzig, Germany
By heritage from the grandfather who acquired the object in Neu Mecklenburg
Publication(s)
Exhibition(s)