Magnificent New Guinea Samban Ancestor Figure - SOLD
Sawos Culture, Middle Sepik Basin, Papua New Guinea
19th century or before
Height 51.3 inches
Provenance: Ex. German Mission
Loed Van Bussel, Amsterdam
Wayne Heathcote, Oxfordshire, UK
Lance Entwistle, London, UK
Bill Ziff Collection, New York
The present figure was previously in the prestigious Ziff collection and has been professionally restored (right side of hook) using the same materials and can easily be removed if so desired (last two images).
Purchased by Bill Ziff in 2000 in excess of $500,000, we are offering this world class masterpiece being best in its class for $164,000.
Neighboring the more riverine Iatmul tribes of the Middle Sepik, the Sawos people inhabit the adjoining forested and open grasslands located a day’s journey inland. Though the art forms of both the Sawos and Iatmul are quite similar in their design and function, Sawos figurative sculptures are considered more powerful and may represent a more archaic artistic tradition. Carved wooden suspension hooks called samban, served both utilitarian and ceremonial functions within Sawos culture. Suspended from the rafters via cordage tied through a suspension hole, samban were used to safeguard food, valuables, and other items that were placed in baskets and hung from the hooked projections at the base to deter rodent predation. Larger samban suspension hooks found in the men’s ceremonial houses served as sacred images and were carved with representations of revered ancestral spirits and totemic animals associated with the owner’s clan. The supernatural beings these ancestral spirits represented could be consulted and presented with offerings.
The largest and most skillfully carved examples, like the remarkable samban suspension hook presented here, represented powerful and potentially dangerous supernatural male beings known as waken, and were intended solely as sacred ritual objects. In the past, each of the most powerful waken had a human attendant, through which it communicated with the human world. Before embarking on a headhunting raid against an enemy village or commencing a hunting expedition, men gathered in the ceremonial house to consult the appropriate waken. The suspension hook embodying the waken was presented offerings of chickens, betel nut, and other valued items, which they hung from the large suspension hook to activate the power of the spirit. The attendant, after consuming the offerings, became possessed by the waken and fell into a trance, during which the spirit spoke through him, providing advice and counsel to the clan.
The samban suspension hook presented here is a particularly fine and early example, dating to the 19th century or before. Masterfully carved using pre-contact stone tooling, the commanding male figure is portrayed with a taut, muscular stance, and powerful gaze that perfectly embodies the supernatural potency of the waken spirit. Framed by prominent broad shoulders, his chest displays a pair of opposing crescent-shaped designs that are bordered by two raised bands of stylized initiation scarification motifs. Symbolizing the characteristic textured skin of the crocodile, these keloid scarification motifs are also found adorning the back of the figure. In the center of the chest is rendered an openwork reptilian totem motif. The head is portrayed with a subtle tilt, further animating the figure, and the face is adorned with ceremonial face paint, whose patterns are like those worn by Sawos men on important occasions. The ears and septum are pierced and would have once secured sacred plant adornments, and the braided fiber cordages tied around the arms and leg would have been specially decorated with totemic plants such as hibiscus flowers. A heavy fiber cordage would have been fashioned and secured through the robustly carved suspension hole found at the back of the neck. The downward phallus is rendered in a stylized manner, and the hands are firmly positioned with rear facing palms and clearly delineated fingers. An old German mission collection number “L 79.55.7” is painted in white on the rear right shoulder. At the bottom of the base hook is visible “WH163” as inscribed and catalogued for the Bill Ziff Collection. The surface of the sculpture exhibits an ancient dry patina composed of layers of applied earth ocher pigments and smoke encrustation. In Sawos tradition, when applied native pigments eventually faded, they were periodically renewed, ensuring that the powerful spirit appeared in full splendor.
The figure stands atop an expansive transverse base hook with carved avian faces adorning the projecting tips. The central base is highlighted by a pair of ancestor maskettes and a series of carved curvilinear designs that symbolize traditional narratives within Sawos mythology. When incorporated into important ancestor sculptures, these curvilinear design elements were intended as a stylization of the eternal cycle of the sun and moon; the juxtaposition between night and day. The moon called out the animals to be hunted by the people of the Sawos tradition, and the sun especially at noon, called out the people to commence a headhunt. It is in this context that the scrolling motifs on this suspension hook were carved, as they relate to the figures embodiment of the waken spirit and its advisory role in both hunting expeditions and headhunting raids.
The left side of the transverse base hook was broken off at some point during the figure’s long history inside the men’s ceremonial house and has now been professionally restored. It is interesting to note that a nearly identical Sawos suspension hook can be found in the collections of the Cambridge Museum of Archeology and Anthropology; having been field collected by British anthropologist Gregory Bateson in New Guinea in 1935. Intriguingly, it’s transverse base hook was also broken in an identical manner, making it reasonable to speculate that these two sculptures may have been ritually broken or “killed” to render the potentially dangerous waken spirit powerless; a related practice found within other South Pacific cultures. Bateson noted that the name given to this particular waken spirit was Kworem-Avwun, perhaps providing us with a rare insight into the sacred name once called out to our samban figure by its attendant during magical trances and ritual incantations.
Sawos Culture, Middle Sepik Basin, Papua New Guinea
19th century or before
Height 51.3 inches
Provenance: Ex. German Mission
Loed Van Bussel, Amsterdam
Wayne Heathcote, Oxfordshire, UK
Lance Entwistle, London, UK
Bill Ziff Collection, New York
The present figure was previously in the prestigious Ziff collection and has been professionally restored (right side of hook) using the same materials and can easily be removed if so desired (last two images).
Purchased by Bill Ziff in 2000 in excess of $500,000, we are offering this world class masterpiece being best in its class for $164,000.
Neighboring the more riverine Iatmul tribes of the Middle Sepik, the Sawos people inhabit the adjoining forested and open grasslands located a day’s journey inland. Though the art forms of both the Sawos and Iatmul are quite similar in their design and function, Sawos figurative sculptures are considered more powerful and may represent a more archaic artistic tradition. Carved wooden suspension hooks called samban, served both utilitarian and ceremonial functions within Sawos culture. Suspended from the rafters via cordage tied through a suspension hole, samban were used to safeguard food, valuables, and other items that were placed in baskets and hung from the hooked projections at the base to deter rodent predation. Larger samban suspension hooks found in the men’s ceremonial houses served as sacred images and were carved with representations of revered ancestral spirits and totemic animals associated with the owner’s clan. The supernatural beings these ancestral spirits represented could be consulted and presented with offerings.
The largest and most skillfully carved examples, like the remarkable samban suspension hook presented here, represented powerful and potentially dangerous supernatural male beings known as waken, and were intended solely as sacred ritual objects. In the past, each of the most powerful waken had a human attendant, through which it communicated with the human world. Before embarking on a headhunting raid against an enemy village or commencing a hunting expedition, men gathered in the ceremonial house to consult the appropriate waken. The suspension hook embodying the waken was presented offerings of chickens, betel nut, and other valued items, which they hung from the large suspension hook to activate the power of the spirit. The attendant, after consuming the offerings, became possessed by the waken and fell into a trance, during which the spirit spoke through him, providing advice and counsel to the clan.
The samban suspension hook presented here is a particularly fine and early example, dating to the 19th century or before. Masterfully carved using pre-contact stone tooling, the commanding male figure is portrayed with a taut, muscular stance, and powerful gaze that perfectly embodies the supernatural potency of the waken spirit. Framed by prominent broad shoulders, his chest displays a pair of opposing crescent-shaped designs that are bordered by two raised bands of stylized initiation scarification motifs. Symbolizing the characteristic textured skin of the crocodile, these keloid scarification motifs are also found adorning the back of the figure. In the center of the chest is rendered an openwork reptilian totem motif. The head is portrayed with a subtle tilt, further animating the figure, and the face is adorned with ceremonial face paint, whose patterns are like those worn by Sawos men on important occasions. The ears and septum are pierced and would have once secured sacred plant adornments, and the braided fiber cordages tied around the arms and leg would have been specially decorated with totemic plants such as hibiscus flowers. A heavy fiber cordage would have been fashioned and secured through the robustly carved suspension hole found at the back of the neck. The downward phallus is rendered in a stylized manner, and the hands are firmly positioned with rear facing palms and clearly delineated fingers. An old German mission collection number “L 79.55.7” is painted in white on the rear right shoulder. At the bottom of the base hook is visible “WH163” as inscribed and catalogued for the Bill Ziff Collection. The surface of the sculpture exhibits an ancient dry patina composed of layers of applied earth ocher pigments and smoke encrustation. In Sawos tradition, when applied native pigments eventually faded, they were periodically renewed, ensuring that the powerful spirit appeared in full splendor.
The figure stands atop an expansive transverse base hook with carved avian faces adorning the projecting tips. The central base is highlighted by a pair of ancestor maskettes and a series of carved curvilinear designs that symbolize traditional narratives within Sawos mythology. When incorporated into important ancestor sculptures, these curvilinear design elements were intended as a stylization of the eternal cycle of the sun and moon; the juxtaposition between night and day. The moon called out the animals to be hunted by the people of the Sawos tradition, and the sun especially at noon, called out the people to commence a headhunt. It is in this context that the scrolling motifs on this suspension hook were carved, as they relate to the figures embodiment of the waken spirit and its advisory role in both hunting expeditions and headhunting raids.
The left side of the transverse base hook was broken off at some point during the figure’s long history inside the men’s ceremonial house and has now been professionally restored. It is interesting to note that a nearly identical Sawos suspension hook can be found in the collections of the Cambridge Museum of Archeology and Anthropology; having been field collected by British anthropologist Gregory Bateson in New Guinea in 1935. Intriguingly, it’s transverse base hook was also broken in an identical manner, making it reasonable to speculate that these two sculptures may have been ritually broken or “killed” to render the potentially dangerous waken spirit powerless; a related practice found within other South Pacific cultures. Bateson noted that the name given to this particular waken spirit was Kworem-Avwun, perhaps providing us with a rare insight into the sacred name once called out to our samban figure by its attendant during magical trances and ritual incantations.
Sawos Culture, Middle Sepik Basin, Papua New Guinea
19th century or before
Height 51.3 inches
Provenance: Ex. German Mission
Loed Van Bussel, Amsterdam
Wayne Heathcote, Oxfordshire, UK
Lance Entwistle, London, UK
Bill Ziff Collection, New York
The present figure was previously in the prestigious Ziff collection and has been professionally restored (right side of hook) using the same materials and can easily be removed if so desired (last two images).
Purchased by Bill Ziff in 2000 in excess of $500,000, we are offering this world class masterpiece being best in its class for $164,000.
Neighboring the more riverine Iatmul tribes of the Middle Sepik, the Sawos people inhabit the adjoining forested and open grasslands located a day’s journey inland. Though the art forms of both the Sawos and Iatmul are quite similar in their design and function, Sawos figurative sculptures are considered more powerful and may represent a more archaic artistic tradition. Carved wooden suspension hooks called samban, served both utilitarian and ceremonial functions within Sawos culture. Suspended from the rafters via cordage tied through a suspension hole, samban were used to safeguard food, valuables, and other items that were placed in baskets and hung from the hooked projections at the base to deter rodent predation. Larger samban suspension hooks found in the men’s ceremonial houses served as sacred images and were carved with representations of revered ancestral spirits and totemic animals associated with the owner’s clan. The supernatural beings these ancestral spirits represented could be consulted and presented with offerings.
The largest and most skillfully carved examples, like the remarkable samban suspension hook presented here, represented powerful and potentially dangerous supernatural male beings known as waken, and were intended solely as sacred ritual objects. In the past, each of the most powerful waken had a human attendant, through which it communicated with the human world. Before embarking on a headhunting raid against an enemy village or commencing a hunting expedition, men gathered in the ceremonial house to consult the appropriate waken. The suspension hook embodying the waken was presented offerings of chickens, betel nut, and other valued items, which they hung from the large suspension hook to activate the power of the spirit. The attendant, after consuming the offerings, became possessed by the waken and fell into a trance, during which the spirit spoke through him, providing advice and counsel to the clan.
The samban suspension hook presented here is a particularly fine and early example, dating to the 19th century or before. Masterfully carved using pre-contact stone tooling, the commanding male figure is portrayed with a taut, muscular stance, and powerful gaze that perfectly embodies the supernatural potency of the waken spirit. Framed by prominent broad shoulders, his chest displays a pair of opposing crescent-shaped designs that are bordered by two raised bands of stylized initiation scarification motifs. Symbolizing the characteristic textured skin of the crocodile, these keloid scarification motifs are also found adorning the back of the figure. In the center of the chest is rendered an openwork reptilian totem motif. The head is portrayed with a subtle tilt, further animating the figure, and the face is adorned with ceremonial face paint, whose patterns are like those worn by Sawos men on important occasions. The ears and septum are pierced and would have once secured sacred plant adornments, and the braided fiber cordages tied around the arms and leg would have been specially decorated with totemic plants such as hibiscus flowers. A heavy fiber cordage would have been fashioned and secured through the robustly carved suspension hole found at the back of the neck. The downward phallus is rendered in a stylized manner, and the hands are firmly positioned with rear facing palms and clearly delineated fingers. An old German mission collection number “L 79.55.7” is painted in white on the rear right shoulder. At the bottom of the base hook is visible “WH163” as inscribed and catalogued for the Bill Ziff Collection. The surface of the sculpture exhibits an ancient dry patina composed of layers of applied earth ocher pigments and smoke encrustation. In Sawos tradition, when applied native pigments eventually faded, they were periodically renewed, ensuring that the powerful spirit appeared in full splendor.
The figure stands atop an expansive transverse base hook with carved avian faces adorning the projecting tips. The central base is highlighted by a pair of ancestor maskettes and a series of carved curvilinear designs that symbolize traditional narratives within Sawos mythology. When incorporated into important ancestor sculptures, these curvilinear design elements were intended as a stylization of the eternal cycle of the sun and moon; the juxtaposition between night and day. The moon called out the animals to be hunted by the people of the Sawos tradition, and the sun especially at noon, called out the people to commence a headhunt. It is in this context that the scrolling motifs on this suspension hook were carved, as they relate to the figures embodiment of the waken spirit and its advisory role in both hunting expeditions and headhunting raids.
The left side of the transverse base hook was broken off at some point during the figure’s long history inside the men’s ceremonial house and has now been professionally restored. It is interesting to note that a nearly identical Sawos suspension hook can be found in the collections of the Cambridge Museum of Archeology and Anthropology; having been field collected by British anthropologist Gregory Bateson in New Guinea in 1935. Intriguingly, it’s transverse base hook was also broken in an identical manner, making it reasonable to speculate that these two sculptures may have been ritually broken or “killed” to render the potentially dangerous waken spirit powerless; a related practice found within other South Pacific cultures. Bateson noted that the name given to this particular waken spirit was Kworem-Avwun, perhaps providing us with a rare insight into the sacred name once called out to our samban figure by its attendant during magical trances and ritual incantations.