Rare Abelam Helmet Mask – Mi Babakumbu
Abelam culture, Prince Alexander Mountains, East Sepik Province
Papua New Guinea
Wood, pigments
Early 20th century
Height: 24 inches
Provenance: Field collected among the Abelam by Michael Kremerskothen of Dortmund, Germany / Gallery Visser, Brussels / Chris and Anna Thorpe personal collection – Sydney, Australia
In Abelam society, a man’s social status was determined not only by his abilities as an orator or warrior but was additionally measured by his success in cultivating and growing “long yams”. Abelam religious life centered around a complex cycle of male initiation associated with the growth and ceremonial exchange of these long yams; massive tubers commonly attaining lengths of nine to twelve feet. Their cultivation was a sacred activity, surrounded by magic and ritual restrictions and was guided under the patronage of wapinyan, beings who were manifestations of the powerful clan spirits known as nggwalndu, whose carved images were central to the male initiation cycle. The enormous yams were regarded not merely as tubers, but rather as living supernatural beings with humanlike qualities, able to hear and smell, but lacking the powers of movement and speech. During the initiation rites, the yams were essentially transformed into ornate anthropomorphic images, decorated in the manner of men in full ceremonial regalia.
Wooden Abelam helmet masks or mi babakumbu, are extremely rare and their function is more elusive and not as well understood in contrast to the more common and familiar wickerwork masks that served to adorn the long yams. A single example was photographed in an Abelam cult house in 1953 by the Swiss anthropologist Paul Wirz. That mask was said to have been used during the nggwalndu maira rituals, associated with the highest stages of initiation of the yam ceremonies and represented spirits of powerful clan ancestors. The holes at the lower perimeter of these wooden masks hint at the attachment of a skirt of sago palm leaf fibers as worn by masqueraders, and the conical extension at the top of the masks likely served to secure the attachment of a feather headdress. Apart from their function in ceremonial dances, these masks would also have been displayed in one of the smaller huts besides the cult house used for ceremonial purposes or temporarily placed in the ceremonial grounds or amei, located in front of the cult house, for the purpose of yam magic.
Like the other known examples of Abelam mi babakumbu, the mask presented here is of voluminous form and monumental size. The eyes of the nggwalndu spirit are represented by a pair of narrow crescent shaped openings, permitting the wearer to see his surroundings while effectively disguising his identity. Two conical projections represent the ears, and the conical extension at the top of the mask, which would have once secured a feather headdress, exhibits a glossy patina indicating it also likely served as a practical handle when maneuvering the mask. The surface of the mask is adorned with painted motifs of red and yellow ocher, and the pigments of the mask are multilayered, indicating this cherished mask was repainted during successive initiation ceremonies over several generations.
Abelam culture, Prince Alexander Mountains, East Sepik Province
Papua New Guinea
Wood, pigments
Early 20th century
Height: 24 inches
Provenance: Field collected among the Abelam by Michael Kremerskothen of Dortmund, Germany / Gallery Visser, Brussels / Chris and Anna Thorpe personal collection – Sydney, Australia
In Abelam society, a man’s social status was determined not only by his abilities as an orator or warrior but was additionally measured by his success in cultivating and growing “long yams”. Abelam religious life centered around a complex cycle of male initiation associated with the growth and ceremonial exchange of these long yams; massive tubers commonly attaining lengths of nine to twelve feet. Their cultivation was a sacred activity, surrounded by magic and ritual restrictions and was guided under the patronage of wapinyan, beings who were manifestations of the powerful clan spirits known as nggwalndu, whose carved images were central to the male initiation cycle. The enormous yams were regarded not merely as tubers, but rather as living supernatural beings with humanlike qualities, able to hear and smell, but lacking the powers of movement and speech. During the initiation rites, the yams were essentially transformed into ornate anthropomorphic images, decorated in the manner of men in full ceremonial regalia.
Wooden Abelam helmet masks or mi babakumbu, are extremely rare and their function is more elusive and not as well understood in contrast to the more common and familiar wickerwork masks that served to adorn the long yams. A single example was photographed in an Abelam cult house in 1953 by the Swiss anthropologist Paul Wirz. That mask was said to have been used during the nggwalndu maira rituals, associated with the highest stages of initiation of the yam ceremonies and represented spirits of powerful clan ancestors. The holes at the lower perimeter of these wooden masks hint at the attachment of a skirt of sago palm leaf fibers as worn by masqueraders, and the conical extension at the top of the masks likely served to secure the attachment of a feather headdress. Apart from their function in ceremonial dances, these masks would also have been displayed in one of the smaller huts besides the cult house used for ceremonial purposes or temporarily placed in the ceremonial grounds or amei, located in front of the cult house, for the purpose of yam magic.
Like the other known examples of Abelam mi babakumbu, the mask presented here is of voluminous form and monumental size. The eyes of the nggwalndu spirit are represented by a pair of narrow crescent shaped openings, permitting the wearer to see his surroundings while effectively disguising his identity. Two conical projections represent the ears, and the conical extension at the top of the mask, which would have once secured a feather headdress, exhibits a glossy patina indicating it also likely served as a practical handle when maneuvering the mask. The surface of the mask is adorned with painted motifs of red and yellow ocher, and the pigments of the mask are multilayered, indicating this cherished mask was repainted during successive initiation ceremonies over several generations.
Abelam culture, Prince Alexander Mountains, East Sepik Province
Papua New Guinea
Wood, pigments
Early 20th century
Height: 24 inches
Provenance: Field collected among the Abelam by Michael Kremerskothen of Dortmund, Germany / Gallery Visser, Brussels / Chris and Anna Thorpe personal collection – Sydney, Australia
In Abelam society, a man’s social status was determined not only by his abilities as an orator or warrior but was additionally measured by his success in cultivating and growing “long yams”. Abelam religious life centered around a complex cycle of male initiation associated with the growth and ceremonial exchange of these long yams; massive tubers commonly attaining lengths of nine to twelve feet. Their cultivation was a sacred activity, surrounded by magic and ritual restrictions and was guided under the patronage of wapinyan, beings who were manifestations of the powerful clan spirits known as nggwalndu, whose carved images were central to the male initiation cycle. The enormous yams were regarded not merely as tubers, but rather as living supernatural beings with humanlike qualities, able to hear and smell, but lacking the powers of movement and speech. During the initiation rites, the yams were essentially transformed into ornate anthropomorphic images, decorated in the manner of men in full ceremonial regalia.
Wooden Abelam helmet masks or mi babakumbu, are extremely rare and their function is more elusive and not as well understood in contrast to the more common and familiar wickerwork masks that served to adorn the long yams. A single example was photographed in an Abelam cult house in 1953 by the Swiss anthropologist Paul Wirz. That mask was said to have been used during the nggwalndu maira rituals, associated with the highest stages of initiation of the yam ceremonies and represented spirits of powerful clan ancestors. The holes at the lower perimeter of these wooden masks hint at the attachment of a skirt of sago palm leaf fibers as worn by masqueraders, and the conical extension at the top of the masks likely served to secure the attachment of a feather headdress. Apart from their function in ceremonial dances, these masks would also have been displayed in one of the smaller huts besides the cult house used for ceremonial purposes or temporarily placed in the ceremonial grounds or amei, located in front of the cult house, for the purpose of yam magic.
Like the other known examples of Abelam mi babakumbu, the mask presented here is of voluminous form and monumental size. The eyes of the nggwalndu spirit are represented by a pair of narrow crescent shaped openings, permitting the wearer to see his surroundings while effectively disguising his identity. Two conical projections represent the ears, and the conical extension at the top of the mask, which would have once secured a feather headdress, exhibits a glossy patina indicating it also likely served as a practical handle when maneuvering the mask. The surface of the mask is adorned with painted motifs of red and yellow ocher, and the pigments of the mask are multilayered, indicating this cherished mask was repainted during successive initiation ceremonies over several generations.