Skip to Main Content

Ancestral Figure

1800s
painted wood with fiber and tapa cloth
Overall: 105.4 x 12.2 x 12.8 cm (41 1/2 x 4 13/16 x 5 1/16 in.)
Gift of Dr. and Mrs. Thomas Munro 1971.150
Location: not on view
You can copy, modify, and distribute this work, all without asking permission. Learn more about CMA's Open Access Initiative.

Download, Print and Share

Description

In the Sepik River region, village social and ceremonial life centers on the men's house. Ritual objects such as slit gongs, orators' stools, and flutes are stored there; the most sacred objects are kept hidden from women and children. Carved wooden figures, which probably represent ancestors, were preserved in the men's houses.
Ancestral Figure

Ancestral Figure

1800s

Melanesia, Papua New Guinea, Sepik River region, 19th century

See Also

Visually Similar Artworks

Contact us

The information about this object, including provenance, may not be currently accurate. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@clevelandart.org.

To request more information about this object, study images, or bibliography, contact the Ingalls Library Reference Desk.

All images and data available through Open Access can be downloaded for free. For images not available through Open Access, a detail image, or any image with a color bar, request a digital file from Image Services.