GENERAL DESCRIPTION
Researchers traced this sculpture to the village of Yamok, north of the Sepik River, where Sawos men carved larger-than-life figures. Each figure represented a male ancestor, probably more mythological than real, and each had a name. This figure was traced to a specific longhouse and his name, Malabi, was restored. Several motifs on Malabi's body probably represent scarification. Crescents appear on the breast area and a serpentine form on the torso. Concentric diamonds surround the navel, and parallel zigzag elements appear on his back and left thigh. The crocodile on Malabi's right thigh may signify a clan totem, while the masklike faces on his hands and feet represent bush or tree spirits (winjembu) associated with the hunting of wild pigs, which the Sawos considered a legitimate substitute for a human victim of the head-hunt. Ritual scarification was part of a young man's initiation into the secret and exclusively male world of the ceremonial house. The sculpture, reportedly carved in an effort to make the swampy land firm for the founding of a village, was kept in the interior space of a men's ceremonial house.
Adapted from
- Carol Robbins, 'Male ancestor figure named Malabi,' in Dallas Museum of Art: A Guide to the Collection, ed. Suzanne Kotz (Dallas: Dallas Museum of Art; New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 1997), 72.
- 'Male ancestor figure named Malabi,' in Dallas Museum of Art: A Guide to the Collection, ed. Bonnie Pitman (Dallas: Dallas Museum of Art; New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2012), 125.
NOTES
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RELATED OBJECTS
PROVENANCE
1956 or 1957: Collected at Gaikorobi village by Oscar Meyer and Bruce Lawes [1]
n.d.: John Huston
1974: Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, The Eugene and Margarett McDermott Art Fund, Inc. (accessioned: April 19, 1974), purchased from Harry A. Franklin Gallery, Beverly Hills [2], [3]
[1] See Anthony Meyer, "Oceanic Art" (Koln: Konemann Verlagsgesellschaft mbH, 1995), 256. In object file.
[2] The name of the Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, founded in 1933, was changed to the Dallas Museum of Art in 1983.
[3] Works of art given or purchased by The Eugene and Margarett McDermott Art Fund, Inc., a non-profit organization, are placed in the custody of the DMA for the purpose of public display on the premises of the Mseum or in other recognized art galleries or museums. The title to all works of art purchased (or otherwise acquired) by the McDermott Art Fund remains with the Fund.
AUDIO ASSETS
- 13313316: UMO, Listen to the lecture "Searching for the DMA's Malabi: Ancestral Figures of the Sepik River Region"
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apply to objects where number equals 1974.5.McD
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General Description
Researchers traced this sculpture to the village of Yamok, north of the Sepik River, where Sawos men carved larger-than-life figures. Each figure represented a male ancestor, probably more mythological than real, and each had a name. This figure was traced to a specific longhouse and his name, Malabi, was restored. Several motifs on Malabi's body probably represent scarification. Crescents appear on the breast area and a serpentine form on the torso. Concentric diamonds surround the navel, and parallel zigzag elements appear on his back and left thigh. The crocodile on Malabi's right thigh may signify a clan totem, while the masklike faces on his hands and feet represent bush or tree spirits (winjembu) associated with the hunting of wild pigs, which the Sawos considered a legitimate substitute for a human victim of the head-hunt. Ritual scarification was part of a young man's initiation into the secret and exclusively male world of the ceremonial house. The sculpture, reportedly carved in an effort to make the swampy land firm for the founding of a village, was kept in the interior space of a men's ceremonial house.
Adapted from
- Carol Robbins, 'Male ancestor figure named Malabi,' in Dallas Museum of Art: A Guide to the Collection, ed. Suzanne Kotz (Dallas: Dallas Museum of Art; New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 1997), 72.
- 'Male ancestor figure named Malabi,' in Dallas Museum of Art: A Guide to the Collection, ed. Bonnie Pitman (Dallas: Dallas Museum of Art; New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2012), 125.
Fun Facts
Archival Resources
Web Resources
Notes
Catalogue essays
Artist/designers
Cultures
Geography
Process/materials
Historical periods
Individuals
Subject terms
RELATED OBJECTS
PROVENANCE
1956 or 1957: Collected at Gaikorobi village by Oscar Meyer and Bruce Lawes [1]
n.d.: John Huston
1974: Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, The Eugene and Margarett McDermott Art Fund, Inc. (accessioned: April 19, 1974), purchased from Harry A. Franklin Gallery, Beverly Hills [2], [3]
[1] See Anthony Meyer, "Oceanic Art" (Koln: Konemann Verlagsgesellschaft mbH, 1995), 256. In object file.
[2] The name of the Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, founded in 1933, was changed to the Dallas Museum of Art in 1983.
[3] Works of art given or purchased by The Eugene and Margarett McDermott Art Fund, Inc., a non-profit organization, are placed in the custody of the DMA for the purpose of public display on the premises of the Mseum or in other recognized art galleries or museums. The title to all works of art purchased (or otherwise acquired) by the McDermott Art Fund remains with the Fund.
AUDIO ASSETS
- 13313316: UMO, Listen to the lecture "Searching for the DMA's Malabi: Ancestral Figures of the Sepik River Region"
VIDEO ASSETS
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