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Pacific Islands Folk Art

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Place of Origin: Pacific Islands
Fiji Ula Club Polynesian war club Tribal Oceanic Antiques
Located in London, GB
Fiji Ula Club Polynesian war club Tribal Oceanic A  good antique Fiji  Ula throwing club With naturally occurring root fissures on the ball head  Good condition with minor age cra...
Category

19th Century Antique Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Hardwood

Late 19th Century War Club, Samoa
Located in Point Richmond, CA
Late 19th Century Fa’alautalinga War Club, Samoa A short cylindrical handle flares and flattens into a paddle form tapering to an edge, with a raised medial ridge on both sides. Fin...
Category

Late 19th Century Tribal Antique Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Wood

Tonga Pakipaki War Club, Polynesia, 18th Century
Located in Delft, NL
A Tonga Pakipaki war club, Polynesia, 18th century An exceptional ironwood war club originating from Tonga, Polynesia. 18th century and hand carved with complex geometric patterns running the length of the shaft. 4 human and 1 botanical glyphs and a extra carving, see details in picture 2 The Tongan war club...
Category

18th Century Antique Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Wood

Vanuatu Fernwood Grade Ritual Figure, Ambrym Island
Located in Point Richmond, CA
Vanuatu Fernwood Grade Ritual Figure, Ambrym Island. A sculpture carved from a solid section of the fibrous trunk of a tree fern composed of aerial roots surrounding a woody core, in...
Category

Mid-20th Century Tribal Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Organic Material

Monumental Papua New Guinea Spirit Figure, Mid-20th Century
Located in Wien, AT
Impressively carved from a single block of wood, this monumental male spirit or ancestor figure originates from the Middle Sepik region of Papua New Guinea. The figure combines stron...
Category

Mid-20th Century Tribal Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Hardwood, Feathers

Important Oceanic Carved Asmat Tribal Sago Bowl Serving Platter after War Shield
Located in Forney, TX
A rare and important Oceanic Papuan Asmat tribal carved ancestral sago bowl (also known as a platter, serving shield and tray) crafted in the likes of the...
Category

20th Century Tribal Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Wood, Paint

Sepik River (Keram Region), Papua New Guinea Ancestral Bust, mid 20th century
Located in Bilzen, BE
Sepik River (Keram River tributary), Papua New Guinea Ancestral Bust (Male Ancestor Figure) Wood, with age cracks and dark matte patina Height: 24 cm, base diameter 10.5 cm Period: M...
Category

Mid-20th Century Tribal Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Wood

Early to mid-20th Century Karaut Pectoral, Abelam Culture, Papua New Guinea
Located in Point Richmond, CA
Karaut pectoral, Southern Abelam people, Papua New Guinea Fiber, boar's tusks, nassa and cowrie shells, pigment 15 by 5.25 inches (38 by 13.3 cm) This finely woven karaut boar’s tus...
Category

Mid-20th Century Tribal Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Shell, Natural Fiber

Early 20th Century Wood and Shell Inlay Scoop, Solomon Islands
Located in Point Richmond, CA
Early 20th Century Wood and Shell Scoop, Solomon Islands A small scoop in the shape of a whale, with three rows of inlaid notched shell triangles and three circular shell eyes. Nice...
Category

Early 20th Century Tribal Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Shell, Wood

20th Century Pacific Islander Samoan Fijian Hand Carved Wood Kava Bowl
Located in San Diego, CA
A wonderful 20th Century Samoan/Fijian circular wooden kava bowl called a tanoa fai'ava and carved from a single piece of wood and standing on seventeen round legs. Made of a native ...
Category

20th Century Tribal Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Wood

Monumental Oceanic Asmat People Carved Painted Wooden War Shield
Located in Forney, TX
A monumental, rare and important Oceanic Papuan Asmat People tribal carved war shield from the first half of the 20th century, collected from the coast of the headhunting tribe in Papua New Guinea, a Provincial Indonesian island in the mid 20th century. Among the Asmat, war shields are the most powerful symbolic element of a warrior's equipment, and have many layers of meaning. Traditionally, they were functional items used to protect warriors in battle by deflecting an enemy's spears and arrows. The carved and painted images on the surface of the shields were also intended to frighten the enemy and symbolize the power of the ancestors. Ancestral imagery appears on multiple forms of Asmat art...
Category

Early 20th Century Tribal Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Wood

Oceanic Schouten islands Pounder Papua New Guinea Tribal Art
Located in London, GB
Oceanic Schouten islands Pounder Papua New Guinea A Fine old hard wood Pounder or pestle with a standing female figure from the schouten islands off the north coast of Papua new Gui...
Category

Early 20th Century Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Hardwood

Oceanian Bamboo Mask with Long Hair from New Guinea
Located in Pasadena, CA
Ceremonial mask from the Sepik River region of Papua New Guinea, associated with the dance traditions of the Eastern Highlands. Crafted from wood, cowrie shells, clay, pigment, and p...
Category

Mid-20th Century Primitive Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Shell, Natural Fiber, Wood

Papuan Gulf New Guinea Bioma Standing Red/White Figure Tod Barlin col
Located in Point Richmond, CA
Papua New Guinea standing figure from the Bioma peoples with raised designs, stylized classic face, and additional face in stomach. Mounted on custom metal and wood base. Traces of...
Category

Mid-20th Century Tribal Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Wood

Large Papua New Guinea Sepik River Mask Strong Face
Located in Point Richmond, CA
Large dark reddish brown carved wood mask with underlying traces of red pigment, from New Guinea Sepik River Area. Strong downward looking expression, carved fringe edges. Signs of...
Category

Mid-20th Century Tribal Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Wood

Mid-20th Century Tribal Tapa Cloth, Fiji
Located in Point Richmond, CA
Tapa cloth made from mulberry fiber with natural pigments, Fiji, mid-20th century.
Category

Mid-20th Century Tribal Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Natural Fiber

Large Oceanic Gope Carved Wooden Ancestor Spirit Board
Located in Forney, TX
An Oceanic "Gope" Papuan ancestral spirit board, 20th century, collected from the Gulf Province, Papua, New Guinea, Kerewa or Hohao village tribe. Hand...
Category

20th Century Folk Art Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Metal

Coral Sculpture, Vintage, Light Green Color, Vintage Medium Size Coral, C 1970
Located in New York, NY
Decorative coral sculpture. The coral is from the 1970s and has a beautiful light colored green shade. Medium size coral sculpture.
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Modern Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Coral

Woven Painted Basketry Old Yam Mask with Sculptural Bird Face, Papua New Guinea
Located in Point Richmond, CA
Early woven painted basketry yam mask from Papua New Guinea. Bug eyed or bird faced mask with heavy incrustation from many years of use, a striking mask that ...
Category

Mid-20th Century Tribal Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Organic Material

Old Stone Axe With Carved Face, Pierced Nose, Papua New Guinea on custom Base
Located in Point Richmond, CA
Early hand carved stone axe with face, long nose with pierced nostrils, framed by loose oval form. Round eyes and slit mouth. Old worn surface. 8 1/2 inches high, early to mid 20th...
Category

Mid-20th Century Tribal Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Stone

Large Woven Painted Basketry Wall Mask Blackwater Rivers, Papua New Guinea
Located in Point Richmond, CA
Large woven painted basketry wall mask created in Blackwater Rivers area, Papua New Guinea. With open expressive mouth and mask fringed with feathers, striking mask that easily hang...
Category

Mid-20th Century Tribal Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Organic Material

Surrealist Wood Vase by Len Brown of Hand and Fingers
Located in Round Top, TX
Surrealist carved Koa wood vase with a hand form "holding" the vessel. Early 20th century dada works by those such as Marcel Duchamp would have certainly found kinship in the concept...
Category

Early 20th Century Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Hardwood

Early Papua New Guinea Sepik Light Wood Yam Mask Elegant Flame Shaped Form
Located in Point Richmond, CA
Early Papua New Guinea Sepik light wood yam mask. Elegant flame shaped form, old, oxidized wood with black accents, traces of yellow and white pigments. Small...
Category

Mid-20th Century Tribal Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Organic Material, Wood

Stirrup Vessel Wood Hand- Carved Massim People Papua New Guinea
Located in Moreno Valley, CA
Wood Carved Stirrup Vessel, or Pipe, Massim people, Trobriand Islands, Papua New Guinea. Hand-carved wood in the form of a large animal with a top ci...
Category

Early 20th Century Tribal Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Wood

Two Ceremonial Weapon from Highlands of Papua New Guinea Provenance
Located in Atlanta, GA
Two Oceanic ceremonial weapons from PNG highlands circa 20th century. It consists of two pieces. The first is an ax with a wood shaft and a flat elongated he...
Category

Mid-20th Century Tribal Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Rattan, Wood

Small Papua New Guinea Sepik River Bird Mask Strong Face
Located in Point Richmond, CA
Small carved darkened wood bird faced mask with long nose/beak. Smaller squatting figure with curled arms carved on forehead. From Sepik River Area of Papua New Guinea. Signs of ...
Category

Mid-20th Century Tribal Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Wood

Fiber Polychrome Mask Yam Ancestor Papua New Guinea
Located in Atlanta, GA
A well preserved Yam Ancestor mask professionally presented on a museum quality acrylic display stand. The mask was a classic tribal art piece from Abela...
Category

Mid-20th Century Tribal Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Natural Fiber, Acrylic

Ironwood Root Carved War Club
Located in London, GB
Gunstock shaped war club ‘Sali’. Ironwood root carved with traditional motifs. An excellent example, mounted on a custom stand in patinated bronze. Measure...
Category

1980s Vintage Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Iron

Iatmul People "Mei" Mask Sepik River New Guinea
Located in Bridgeport, CT
A large and powerfully carved Ceremonial Mask from New Guinea. In mineral paints with Cowrie Shell Eyes. Collected in Kaminabit, Middle Sepik Region, Papua New Guinea. The Mei is t...
Category

20th Century Tribal Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Wood, Paint

Early Papua New Guinea Sepik Woven Yam Mask Yellow Pigments on Custom Base
Located in Point Richmond, CA
Early Papua New Guinea Sepik River area tightly woven raffia yam mask with areas of heavy yellow and black pigments. In profile small bird beak form at bottom...
Category

Mid-20th Century Tribal Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Organic Material

20th Century Tribal Bamboo Comb, Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea
Located in Point Richmond, CA
Mid to late 20th century incised bamboo comb, Huon Gulf, Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea This large incised comb is typical of the bamboo combs of the Huon Gulf area. This parti...
Category

Late 20th Century Tribal Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Bamboo

Late 19th-Early 20th White Bailer Shell Pectoral, Highlands, Papua New Guinea
Located in Point Richmond, CA
Late 19th-early 20th Bailer shell pectoral, Highlands, possibly Mendi People, Papua New Guinea These large shell pectorals were worn ceremonially by men and women in Papua New Guine...
Category

Early 20th Century Tribal Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Shell

Karaut 'Pectoral' Ornament, Abelam Culture, Papua New Guinea
Located in Point Richmond, CA
This piece is an excellent example of an adornment used by Abelam warriors to frighten their enemies. They are held in a warrior’s mouth for courage and to intimidate their adversary...
Category

Early 20th Century Other Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Shell, Natural Fiber

Woven Painted Basketry Old Yam Helmet Mask Sculptural Face Papua New Guinea
Located in Point Richmond, CA
Woven painted basketry yam helmet style mask from Papua New Guinea. Hollow woven form with traces of red and white pigments. Would have been put on top of a large yam as a part of th...
Category

Mid-20th Century Tribal Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Organic Material

Coconut Shell Carved Ritual Cup – Iatmul People, Sepik River, Png
Located in Bilzen, BE
"Coconut Shell Carved Ritual Cup – Iatmul People, Sepik River, Png" Antique Carved Coconut Shell Ritual Bowl – Iatmul People, Sepik River...
Category

Late 19th Century Tribal Antique Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Coconut

Vintage South Seas Carved Teak Mermaid
Located in Nantucket, MA
Early vintage or antique South Seas carved teak Mermaid, circa 1920s or perhaps earlier, a hand carved upright figure holding a carved shell, with deeply carved flowers in grooved hair flowing down back, shell necklace, and scale pattern throughout her tail. The statue is weathered, has a few age cracks, and the end of the tail is broken. Mounted long ago on a late Victorian brass lamp...
Category

Early 20th Century Folk Art Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Teak

Shell Currency Yua Bride's Price, Papua New Guinea
Located in Point Richmond, CA
Yua Shell Currency, Bride’s Price Sepik River Region, Papua New Guinea Hand carved from a clam shell Measures: 7.5 x 8.5 in / 19 x 22 cm Height on c...
Category

20th Century Other Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Shell

Samoan Bark Cloth (Siapo) with Geometric Motifs, Late 19th – Early 20th Century
Located in Fukuoka, JP
A striking and culturally rich Samoan bark cloth textile (siapo), dating to the late 19th to early 20th century CE. Measuring approximately 120 x 130 cm, this impressive work was cra...
Category

Late 19th Century Antique Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Wood, Paper

Club, Kanak Bird Beak (kana), 19th Century, New Caledonia
Located in Bilzen, BE
"Club, Kanak Bird Beak (kana), 19th Century, New Caledonia" 19th-Century Kanak War Club (Kana) Origin: New Caledonia (Kanak People, Melanesia) Date: 19th century Material: Hardwood (...
Category

19th Century Tribal Antique Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Wood

Mid-20th Century Tami Islands Papua New Guinea Tribal Wooden Feast Bowl
Located in Point Richmond, CA
mid-20th century Tami Islands Papua new guinea wooden feast bowl Of classic form, each end carved with raised and incised imagery depicting stylized sea cr...
Category

Mid-20th Century Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Kaolin, Wood

Early 20th Century Abstract Tapa Headdress, Santa Cruz Island, Solomon Islands
Located in Point Richmond, CA
Tapa Headdress, Lepau, Santa Cruz Island, East Solomon Islands Paper mulberry tree inner bark, natural dye Late 19th to early 20th century 67.5 by 18 inches (171.4 by 45.7 cm) Ex pri...
Category

Early 20th Century Tribal Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Natural Fiber

A rare Papua 'Gope' Spirit board from the Schulze Westrum collection
Located in Amsterdam, NL
A rare Papua 'Gope' Spirit board from the Schulze Westrum collection New Guinea, Papua Gulf, probably Minagoiravi, Wapo River, late 19th–early 20th century H. 130 x W. 24.5 cm Pro...
Category

Late 19th Century Antique Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Wood

A Huli wigman's ceremonial headdress
Located in Amsterdam, NL
Papua New Guinea, Central Highlands, Huli people, 1st half 20th century Crafted from the wearer’s own hair and adorned with colorful bird-of-paradise feathers, flowers, scarab beetl...
Category

20th Century Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Shell, Feathers

Large Basketry Gable Mask from Papua New Guinea
Located in Highland, IN
A beautiful and large example of Oceanic art, this delightful woven mask would have been used on the gable of a middle Sepik meeting house. The wildly expressive form is accentuated ...
Category

1940s Tribal Vintage Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Cane, Rattan, Wood

A Sepik 'panggal' sago spathe or tree bark painting of an ancestral figure
Located in Amsterdam, NL
East-Sepik Province, Keram River, early 20th century The painting in non-binded pigment on sago spathe, bark of a sago palm, depicts an ancestral figure surrounded by a saw fish...
Category

Early 20th Century Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Wood

Solomon Islands Coral Stone Ancestor's Carved Head
Located in Leuven , BE
The Tribes from the Solomon Islands worshipped the skulls of their ancestors as being the home of their spirits. If no remains of a great man were pres...
Category

1890s Antique Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Coral

A Solomon Islands red feather money coil or 'Tevau'
Located in Amsterdam, NL
Santa Cruz, Nendö, late 19th/early 20th century Retaining an original leaf in which these coils were wrapped. L. 72 cm (stretched out) Diam. 34 cm (roll) One of the most remarkabl...
Category

Late 19th Century Antique Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Feathers

18th Century Polynesian Hardwood Ula Tavatava or Throwing War Club from Fiji
Located in Amsterdam, NL
A Polynesian hardwood Ula tavatava or throwing war club Fiji, probably 18th century All-over decorated in incised pattern, the bulbous top seems to have a stone grown into it. H. 42 cm Including museum-quality powder-coated stand. Provenance: Private collection, France Polynesian culture is traditionally a culture of power and prestige, and there was a fine line between battle and ceremony. Warrior people par excellence, the Fijians had at their disposal a large panoply of weapons, each for a specific use. The elegant Gata are called gun-sticks by Europeans due to the recognizable form. However, they are designed after a snake, gata in Fijian language. The Ula throwing clubs...
Category

18th Century Antique Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Hardwood

Papua New Guinea Carved-Wood Lumi Shield on Custom Iron Stand
Located in Atlanta, GA
A Papua New Guinea carved-wood Lumi shield from the mid-20th century. This vintage war shield from the West Sepik region, the northwestern most province of...
Category

Mid-20th Century Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Iron

Early Papua New Guinea Weathered Sepik Stylized Hook Figure Mask
Located in Point Richmond, CA
Early Papua New Guinea abstract hook figure or mask with two opposing hooks, and central looped design, Sepik River area. Some chips missing to central loops. Small hole at top for s...
Category

Mid-20th Century Tribal Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Organic Material

An ancient Papua wooden substitute headhunters's head
Located in Amsterdam, NL
Papua New Guinea, 18th-19th century L. 22.5 x W. 18 cm (approx.) Provenance: Collected by Schulze-Westrum Collection Rinck Hollnberger, Munich (purchased in the 1980s or 1990s) For a comparable skull see the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. The heads of humans and of animals such as crocodiles and pigs formerly played integral roles in the ceremonial life of Papuan Gulf peoples, who considered the heads to be vessels of life-giving supernatural power. Within men’s ceremonial houses, human skulls were displayed, together with sacred images such as spirit boards or gope, by the members of each clan in a specially constructed clan shrine. However, not all heads required the death of an enemy. In some areas, heads made from wood or other materials appear to have had powers equal to actual ones. In contrast to skulls, the facial features of wood heads were sometimes depicted as they appeared in life. This example comes from the Wapo Creek area, where wood heads appear to have been used interchangeably with actual skulls. When headhunting was abolished by Australian colonial...
Category

19th Century Antique Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Wood

A bridal headdress from Papua called 'ambusap'
Located in Amsterdam, NL
Iatmul, Papua New Guinea, 20th century This ceremonial headdress is traditionally worn by a young bride as she enters her new husband’s home for the first time. Adorned with shells—...
Category

19th Century Antique Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Shell, Natural Fiber

Rockefeller Irivake Figure
Located in San Pedro Garza Garcia, Nuevo Leon
Abstract and anthropomorphic large figure from the Pie River, located to the east of the Era River. Abstract, anthropomorphic form stands on separate legs with dynamic varying outline, wide hips, and torso leading straight to a rounded head. Figure represents Irivake, the ancestor hero who is considered as the founder of headhunting, also believed to have climbed to the sky and to command lightning. It is enlivened with various curvilinear details highlighted with red and white pigments. The back appears with a collection number in red, and the following: Ipigau (village), Upper Pie River, Papua, P63.20. This is a 'later example', not a first generation piece with several age cracks. It has likely seen field use, but not extensive field use. Provenance: Private New Jersey Collection, ex. Michael Rockefeller...
Category

Mid-20th Century Primitive Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Wood

A rare Papua 'Gope' Spirit board from the Schulze Westrum collection
Located in Amsterdam, NL
A rare Papua 'Gope' Spirit board from the Schulze Westrum collection New Guinea, Papua Gulf, probably Urama people, late 19th–early 20th century H. 114 x W. 27 cm Provenance: - Co...
Category

Late 19th Century Antique Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Wood

A male ceremonial armband made with bat-teeth
Located in Amsterdam, NL
Papua New Guinea, late 19th/early 20th century Male ceremonial 'armband' made of bat teeth drilled and tied in a double row to a woven band of palm fibre.
Category

Late 19th Century Antique Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Natural Fiber, Beads, Teeth

A Rare Papua New Guinea Kukukuku War Club, Eastern Highlands - Morobe Province
Located in Ottawa, Ontario
This rare antique Kukukuku (pronounced "cookah-cookah") war club originates from the Morobe Province, which is a very remote area located within the Eastern Highlands of Papua New Gu...
Category

Early 20th Century Tribal Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Stone

A rare Papua 'Gope' Spirit board from the Schulze Westrum collection
Located in Amsterdam, NL
A rare Papua 'Gope' Spirit board from the Schulze Westrum collection New Guinea, Papua Gulf, probably Urama people, late 19th–early 20th century Attached to the back are several 'b...
Category

Late 19th Century Antique Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Wood

Pair of Mendi Carved-Wood War Shields from Papua New Guinea on Custom Stands
Located in Atlanta, GA
A pair of Papua New Guinea Mendi wooden war shields on custom stands from the mid-20th century. This pair of war shields originate from the Mendi region, within the Southern Highlands of Papua New Guinea. These oceanic war shields were not only created for protecting oneself for tribal warfare, but also in ancestral and ritual worship. They are adorn in various motifs, coloring and symbolism, intended to protect the carrier from magic and bring fear to the opponent. The shields are displayed upright on a custom black iron Stand, with the tallest of the set standing at a height of over 4.5 ft tall. This pair of Papua New Guinea shields...
Category

Mid-20th Century Tribal Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Iron

18th Century Polynesian Ironwood Gata Waka or War Club from Fiji
Located in Amsterdam, NL
A Polynesian ironwood Gata waka or war club Fiji, probably 18th century or earlier Measures: Height. 97 cm Including museum-quality powder-coated stand. Provenance: Private collection, France Polynesian culture is traditionally a culture of power and prestige, and there was a fine line between battle and ceremony. Warrior people par excellence, the Fijians had at their disposal a large panoply of weapons, each for a specific use. The elegant Gata are called gun-sticks by Europeans due to the recognizable form. However, they are designed after a snake, gata in Fijian language. The Ula throwing clubs...
Category

18th Century Antique Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Hardwood

A pair of monkey skull amulets
Located in Amsterdam, NL
Probably Papua New Guinea, or Borneo, Dayak, late 19th/early 20th century H. approx. 12 cm (incl. stand, each) Provenance: Private collection, Flanders
Category

Late 19th Century Antique Pacific Islands Folk Art

Materials

Shell, Beads

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