GENERAL DESCRIPTION
The distinctive posture of this ancestor figure suggests a detachment associated with a trance or deep sleep: its eyes appear closed, the arms hang straight, and the legs seem not to support any weight. On Atauro, ancestor figures were paired in male and female couples, representing a family’s most prominent ancestors. Called itara after the cords that bind them, the figures were hung from a sacred hook in each house, the status of which was determined by the number of figures affixed to the hook. If something was stolen, the itara were given offerings of corn, fish, and betel and placed on the threshold in the hope that they would find the thief.
Adapted from
Roslyn A. Walker, Label text, 2013.
NOTES
Catalogue essays
Artist/designers
Cultures
Geography
Process/materials
Historical periods
Individuals
Subject terms
RELATED OBJECTS
PROVENANCE
1979: Collected on the island of Timor by Steven G. Alpert
1981: Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, purchased from above [1]
The main source for this provenance is the Collections Record object card in the Collections Records object file (1981.15).
[1] The name of the Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, founded in 1933, was changed to the Dallas Museum of Art in 1983.
AUDIO ASSETS
VIDEO ASSETS
IMAGE ASSETS
WEB RESOURCES
ARCHIVAL RESOURCES
FUN FACTS
TEACHING IDEAS
RULES
Apply to objects where number equals 1981.15
Category
rules_operator
AND
General Description
The distinctive posture of this ancestor figure suggests a detachment associated with a trance or deep sleep: its eyes appear closed, the arms hang straight, and the legs seem not to support any weight. On Atauro, ancestor figures were paired in male and female couples, representing a family’s most prominent ancestors. Called itara after the cords that bind them, the figures were hung from a sacred hook in each house, the status of which was determined by the number of figures affixed to the hook. If something was stolen, the itara were given offerings of corn, fish, and betel and placed on the threshold in the hope that they would find the thief.
Adapted from
Roslyn A. Walker, Label text, 2013.
Fun Facts
Archival Resources
Web Resources
Notes
Catalogue essays
Artist/designers
Cultures
Geography
Process/materials
Historical periods
Individuals
Subject terms
RELATED OBJECTS
PROVENANCE
1979: Collected on the island of Timor by Steven G. Alpert
1981: Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, purchased from above [1]
The main source for this provenance is the Collections Record object card in the Collections Records object file (1981.15).
[1] The name of the Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, founded in 1933, was changed to the Dallas Museum of Art in 1983.
AUDIO ASSETS
VIDEO ASSETS
rules
Apply To
Objects
number
Equals
1981.15
source file
object_notes_2_d-0081.xml.nores