PNG, Lower Sepik, a standing male ancestor spirit figure, ca. 1900,

PNG, Lower Sepik, a standing male ancestor spirit figure, ca. 1900, with open carved bent arms, hands touching the chin, a large oval head with large almond shaped eyes, a nose with large flared nostrils and pierced septum, wearing a nose jewel. The figure decorated with intricate carved patterns. Wearing a beaten bark cloth loin cloth, the eyes highlighted with white pigments, the figure overall with remnants of white and red pigments. H. 24 cm. mounted on a wooden stand with a custom made metal circular base. Provenance: From the detailed collector's archive the provenance in a hand written note mentions a staff member of the Museum voor het Onderwijs (Museum for Education) in The Hague as the first owner. Most probably the staff member referred to is A.J. de Lorm, from 1925 to 1944 ethnographic department curator. In the late 1920s he gave the statue to a private collector in Barchem, Holland who then sold it to a private Dutch collector in 1964. Family collection. Covered in a dark reddish brown patina, this figure is comparable to the amulets, brag, and kandimbong ancestor figures found in the lower Sepik and Ramu river area. In these smaller sculptures the head and legs are emphasized. By carving a headdress the head seems to be elongated and constitutes one third of the the total height of the sculpture. A prominent nose with a pierced septum shows a pendulous ornament. Free carved thin long arms in rare W-shape terminating in not accentuated hands touching the chin The legs in the present sculpture are accentuated by an incised pattern with a central ridge running from hip to the base; feet are absent. The same pattern is found in the headdress, whereas the back of the head has a same pattern carved around a knag in the wood. The back has an intriguing serrated V-shape, which may represent an initiation marking. These clan-related incised patterns and originate likely from the Murik Lakes. [1]