Wood
Presumed period: late 19th / early 20th century
Probably Romkun population
Central Ramu River region // Upper Goam River
Madang province
Papua New Guinea

Provenance :
Mia & Loed Van Bussel Collection, Amsterdam (label on back VG004)
Joe De Buck Collection, Brussels

The stylistics of this rare sculpture are typical of the region between the upper Goam River and the center of the Ramu River.
A figure with non-existent shoulders, arms detached along the body, hands resting above a belt represented by a rim. The sex is exaggerated.
The face is typical of Romkun sculpture. It is topped by a headdress and carved with a sharp-edged double border that forms two short hooks pointing downwards, respectively above and below the root of the nose. The septum is marked by an angular transverse hole slightly above the tip of the nose. Very large, cone-shaped eyes. Mouth and ears not shown.

For a similar model collected in 1899, see Kelm. Kunst vom Sepik, Berlin 1966, Vol 3 n°237