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THB20th C. Sulawesi Wood Ancestral / Tau Tau Figures (pr)
Lot 87b
About Seller
Artemis Gallery
686 S Taylor Ave, Ste 106
Louisville, CO 80027
United States
Selling antiquities, ancient and ethnographic art online since 1993, Artemis Gallery specializes in Classical Antiquities (Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Near Eastern), Asian, Pre-Columbian, African / Tribal / Oceanographic art. Our extensive inventory includes pottery, stone, metal, wood, glass and textil...Read more
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Live Auction in Progress ... Currently on Lot Estimate:
$6,000 - $8,000
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About Auction
Live
By Artemis Gallery
Feb 18, 2021
Set Reminder
2021-02-18 10:00:00
2021-02-18 10:00:00
America/New_York
Bidsquare
Bidsquare : Exceptional Antiquities, Asian, Ethnographic
https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/artemis-gallery/exceptional-antiquities-asian-ethnographic-6373
Museum-worthy examples of Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Etruscan, Near Eastern, Far East / Asian, Pre-Columbian, African / Tribal, Oceanic, Native American, Spanish Colonial, Russian, Fossils, Ancient Jewelry, Fine Art, so much more! Artemis Gallery info@artemisgallery.com
Museum-worthy examples of Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Etruscan, Near Eastern, Far East / Asian, Pre-Columbian, African / Tribal, Oceanic, Native American, Spanish Colonial, Russian, Fossils, Ancient Jewelry, Fine Art, so much more! Artemis Gallery info@artemisgallery.com
View Full Catalog (356)
- Lot Description
Southeast Asia, Indonesia, Sulawesi Island, Toraja people, ca. first half of the 20th century CE. A fine pair of nearly life-sized wooden ancestral figures known as tau tau (sometimes tao tao) - each with articulated arms and legs as well as a head that can be turned and removed. Both figures stand upon slightly bent legs with upper tenons pinned inside deep mortises within the hip and have thick dowels to attach the arms to the shoulders. Each head exhibits incised nasolabial wrinkles, bared teeth beneath a thin nose, prominent ears, and gaunt eye sockets that frame the pinned shell eye appliques. The minimalist design of these statues suggests they were adorned with clothing, wigs, and even jewelry to honor the deceased ancestor they represent. Size of largest (female): 14.25" W x 58.125" H (36.2 cm x 147.6 cm); 60" H (152.4 cm) on included custom stand.
The Toraja people live in the mountains of southern Sulawesi Island which is covered by dense rainforest. Today most Toraja people practice the Christian religion as a result of missionaries, however their traditional religion - known as aluk to dolo ("law of the ancestors") - is still practiced with regard to funerary rituals; this includes the creation of tau tau like these examples. Traditional Toraja beliefs hold that when one dies, they will remain an active member of the family by bringing either good or bad luck depending on how well they are respected once deceased. As a result, the most important ceremony in a person's life is the funeral. Prior to the 17th century, Torajans buried family members in coffins stored at the base of cliffs. Unfortunately, their graves were plundered due to easy access, and so they began to hide the graves inside niches hollowed out into the cliffs. It cost a family several buffalo to commission a specialist to hollow out a cliff-face gravesite, and so the process could take many years depending on the wealthy of the family. Tau tau like these examples would then stand guard, looking down from a balcony on the rock face.
For another example of a standing tau tau statue, please see The Metropolitan Museum of Art, accession number 1988.143.91
Provenance: ex-private Barber collection, Illinois, USA collection; ex-Mr. & Mrs. James Van Ella collection, Lake Forest, Illinois, USA, purportedly purchased from Allan Frumkin, Chicago, Illinois, USA
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#154890Both heads are removable. Repairs to right foot and right elbow of female as well as right elbow and two right toes on male, all with chips and adhesive residue along break lines. One elbow pin on female restored. Both figures have abrasions and chips to heads, bodies, arms, and legs, with several stable fissures, light encrustations, and light softening to some finer details. Wonderful patina and great earthen deposits throughout.Condition
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