A POLYCHROME WICKERWORK CEREMONIAL SPIRIT MASK, ASMAT PEOPLE
A POLYCHROME WICKERWORK CEREMONIAL SPIRIT MASK, ASMAT PEOPLE
This lot is from a single owner collection and is therefore offered without reserve
The Jorgen Ruben Gallery Ledger, entry from 2005:
“No. 545, OK 2002, Papua New Guinea Medicine Man Mask ca. 80 cm h.”
Gallery price: EUR 1,400 or approx.
EUR 2,300 adjusted for inflation at the time of writing.
Southwest Papua New Guinea, mid-20th century. Fashioned from woven wicker in a conical form, the front bears three oval openings of more loosely interlaced fibers that, together with a schematic projecting nose, suggest an abstracted human face. Two lateral apertures provide access for the arms, from the edges of which, as well as from the lower edge of the mask, hang long fibers in orange hues. The wicker body is further decorated with alternating red bands and areas of the natural wicker tone, all outlined in black.
Provenance: Oliver Klitgaard, Denmark, by 2002. Jorgen Ruben, acquired from the above. In the Jorgen Ruben Collection for 24 years.
Oliver Klitgaard is a Danish antiques dealer and collector specializing in Asian art, archaeology, ethnographic material, and antiquities. Based in Copenhagen, he is known for his longstanding friendship with Prince Henrik of Denmark, with whom he shared a passion for jade and Asian art, undertaking numerous collecting trips to China over more than two decades.
Jorgen Ruben is a Danish art dealer and collector who has been active for over four decades and is highly regarded in the fields of Asian art and classical antiquities. Raised in an art-conscious family, Ruben was exposed early to both modern painting and European decorative arts. He began working in the art trade in the mid-1970s, first with Persian rugs and later with antiques, while travels to Iran and a visit to Persepolis sparked his lasting interest in antiquity. After studies in Copenhagen and London, he worked in England with a dealer in early furniture, before travelling widely in Latin America and Asia, deepening his knowledge of regional art and culture. In 1984 Ruben opened a gallery in Copenhagen dealing in Asian antiquities. He was later active in London and, in the early 2000s, operated the Brussels gallery Classic Art. Much of his career, however, has been conducted privately from home, selling by appointment to collectors, galleries, and museums. Ruben has always bought selectively, choosing only works that deeply engaged him, and often keeping them for many years until placing them with a collector he felt truly understood them.
Important Note: For essential information on the
Jorgen Ruben Gallery Ledger and provenance documentation please visit here: www.zacke.at/rubencollection_ledger
Condition: Good condition with expected wear, traces of usage, including broken wicker fibers and loose threads, and rubbing to pigments.
Weight: 423.5 g
Dimensions: 111.3 cm
The art and religious life of the Asmat people of southwestern New Guinea are closely bound to the spirits of the recently deceased. Among their most important ceremonies is the mask feast, an elaborate sequence of rites culminating in the return of the dead, embodied by performers wearing full-length body masks.
Two principal mask types are used.
The first, represented by the present example, is a conical mask depicting a legendary orphan and appears in a humorous, theatrical prelude to the main ceremony. The second represents specific deceased individuals, with each mask bearing the name and identity of the person embodied.
At the climax of the feast, the masked spirits emerge from the forest and pass through the village, receiving food and hospitality before entering the ceremonial men's house. There, the living and the dead join in a communal dance lasting late into the night. By the following morning, having been properly honored and sustained, the spirits depart for Safan, the realm of the ancestors.
Literature comparison:
Compare a related body mask, Indonesia, West Papua New Guinea, Asmat people, mid-20th century, 170.2 cm high, in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, object number 1978.412.1282a. Compare a related ceremonial body mask, Papua New Guinea, Asmat people, 20th century, 191 cm high, in the British Museum, registration number Oc1975,01.1. Compare a related Tumbuan mask, Papua New Guinea, East Sepik Province, c. 1979, 199.5 cm high, in the National Gallery of Victoria, accession number 2013.309.
Buyer's Premium
30%
Estimate
Time, Location
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A POLYCHROME WICKERWORK CEREMONIAL SPIRIT MASK, ASMAT PEOPLE
This lot is from a single owner collection and is therefore offered without reserve
The Jorgen Ruben Gallery Ledger, entry from 2005:
“No. 545, OK 2002, Papua New Guinea Medicine Man Mask ca. 80 cm h.”
Gallery price: EUR 1,400 or approx.
EUR 2,300 adjusted for inflation at the time of writing.
Southwest Papua New Guinea, mid-20th century. Fashioned from woven wicker in a conical form, the front bears three oval openings of more loosely interlaced fibers that, together with a schematic projecting nose, suggest an abstracted human face. Two lateral apertures provide access for the arms, from the edges of which, as well as from the lower edge of the mask, hang long fibers in orange hues. The wicker body is further decorated with alternating red bands and areas of the natural wicker tone, all outlined in black.
Provenance: Oliver Klitgaard, Denmark, by 2002. Jorgen Ruben, acquired from the above. In the Jorgen Ruben Collection for 24 years.
Oliver Klitgaard is a Danish antiques dealer and collector specializing in Asian art, archaeology, ethnographic material, and antiquities. Based in Copenhagen, he is known for his longstanding friendship with Prince Henrik of Denmark, with whom he shared a passion for jade and Asian art, undertaking numerous collecting trips to China over more than two decades.
Jorgen Ruben is a Danish art dealer and collector who has been active for over four decades and is highly regarded in the fields of Asian art and classical antiquities. Raised in an art-conscious family, Ruben was exposed early to both modern painting and European decorative arts. He began working in the art trade in the mid-1970s, first with Persian rugs and later with antiques, while travels to Iran and a visit to Persepolis sparked his lasting interest in antiquity. After studies in Copenhagen and London, he worked in England with a dealer in early furniture, before travelling widely in Latin America and Asia, deepening his knowledge of regional art and culture. In 1984 Ruben opened a gallery in Copenhagen dealing in Asian antiquities. He was later active in London and, in the early 2000s, operated the Brussels gallery Classic Art. Much of his career, however, has been conducted privately from home, selling by appointment to collectors, galleries, and museums. Ruben has always bought selectively, choosing only works that deeply engaged him, and often keeping them for many years until placing them with a collector he felt truly understood them.
Important Note: For essential information on the
Jorgen Ruben Gallery Ledger and provenance documentation please visit here: www.zacke.at/rubencollection_ledger
Condition: Good condition with expected wear, traces of usage, including broken wicker fibers and loose threads, and rubbing to pigments.
Weight: 423.5 g
Dimensions: 111.3 cm
The art and religious life of the Asmat people of southwestern New Guinea are closely bound to the spirits of the recently deceased. Among their most important ceremonies is the mask feast, an elaborate sequence of rites culminating in the return of the dead, embodied by performers wearing full-length body masks.
Two principal mask types are used.
The first, represented by the present example, is a conical mask depicting a legendary orphan and appears in a humorous, theatrical prelude to the main ceremony. The second represents specific deceased individuals, with each mask bearing the name and identity of the person embodied.
At the climax of the feast, the masked spirits emerge from the forest and pass through the village, receiving food and hospitality before entering the ceremonial men's house. There, the living and the dead join in a communal dance lasting late into the night. By the following morning, having been properly honored and sustained, the spirits depart for Safan, the realm of the ancestors.
Literature comparison:
Compare a related body mask, Indonesia, West Papua New Guinea, Asmat people, mid-20th century, 170.2 cm high, in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, object number 1978.412.1282a. Compare a related ceremonial body mask, Papua New Guinea, Asmat people, 20th century, 191 cm high, in the British Museum, registration number Oc1975,01.1. Compare a related Tumbuan mask, Papua New Guinea, East Sepik Province, c. 1979, 199.5 cm high, in the National Gallery of Victoria, accession number 2013.309.
Buyer's Premium
30%
Estimate
Time, Location
Auction House
