Oceania, Papua New Guinea, Middle Sepik River region, Iatmul people, ca. 20th century CE. A highly-detailed set of two carved wooden trophy heads, each with fine facial details and painted mask-like face in hues of yellow, red, and black, all atop a lustrous brown pigment. Each face exhibits a long, slender nose with flared nostrils, a thin mouth, petite semicircular ears, and a globular skull composition. A handful of small shells comprise the eyes and adorns the top of the forehead, and curls of dark-brown hair are inserted into shallow gouges near the top of the head. Each head has a planar top and neck base meant for stacking multiple examples atop one another. Size of each (both are relatively similar): 5" W x 5.75" H (12.7 cm x 14.6 cm).
Provenance: ex-private Pearson collection, Denver, Colorado, USA; ex-Artemis Gallery; ex-private Tucson, Arizona, USA collection; ex-Ron Perry collection; Ron Perry collected art and artifacts for more than 40 years in New Guinea and the South Pacific. He collaborated with Carolyn Leigh to write a book entitled, "Art Dealer in the Last Unknown: Ron Perry & New Guinea Art: the early years 1964-1972" (2011).
All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.
A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience.
#143111
Condition
Small area of repair to shells of one head. Both heads have expected age-commensurate surface wear, light pigmentation fading and loss, small hairline fissures, and small nicks and chips to base and facial details. Light earthen deposits throughout. Each head has a drilled hole beneath neck base for mounting.