This is a wooden Asmat carving which portrays an abstracted form of a male character with his knees bent and his arms stretched upwards towards his head. The piece measures 32” in length and 7” in width. At the bottom is a thin wedge which would have been used to anchor this piece in the soft mud of an Asmat village. Above this wedge are two ouroboros symbols, one on top of the other. Atop these symbols is the image of a man in a seated position. His legs are bent outwards and his elbows rest upon his knees. He features a long neck and a head which is attached to the hands via the thumbs. Along the body are a number of carvings which are painted red in geometric patterns.
Carvings such as this typically depicted an ancestor figure or someone important to the community who had since passed away. These carvings would be produced for the festival of the Great Woodcarver Fumeripits as a celebration of the Asmat creation myth in which Fumeripits carved humanity out of sago trunks. After the festival, carvings would be deposited in the rainforests as a means of rejuvenating the sago trees with the spirits of ancestors. The role of ancestral carvings in Asmat society cannot be overstated. Pieces such as this illustrate the spiritual connection between the people, the spirits, and the land.
Colors: Brown, Red, White
