Ifugao Bulul Figure, Rice Guardian, ca. 1800-1899 CE, Philippines
Southeast Asia, Philippines, Northern Luzon, Ifugao, ca. 1800–1899 CE. A standing male guardian carved from a single block of dense hardwood, rising on an integral corseted base with broad flat feet and splayed toes. The legs are engaged, the torso lean beneath wide shoulders, the arms held straight at the sides with fingers incised across the thighs, the phallus bared. Above, a squared face with lidded eyes, straight nose, and pursed mouth sits under a smooth bowl-shaped cap of striated hair bound by a fillet, flanked by projecting ears. Weathering and long handling have given the wood a dark, unctuous patina. Such figures, known as bulul, are stylized ancestors set to guard the rice crop and granary, their power drawn from the spirit believed to inhabit them. Size: 7" W x 23" H (17.8 cm W x 58.4 cm H).
Bulul (also bul-ul or tinagtaggu) are the best known sculptural form of the Ifugao and their Kalanguya neighbors in the Cordillera highlands of northern Luzon. Carved in pairs, male and female, from narra or other hard woods by a specialist carver working under ritual constraint, they were consecrated with sacrifice, rice wine, and pig blood, then installed in the granary or brought into the fields at planting and harvest to secure and multiply the crop. Repeated libations build the thick, resinous accretion prized on old examples. Ifugao carvers are especially esteemed for the restraint of the type: the swelling calf, the shelf of the shoulders, and the bowl of hair carry the form, while surface ornament is refused almost entirely.
Provenance: Private Hawaii collection; purportedly ex. Loed & Mia van Bussel, Amsterdam.
SHIPPING: We coordinate worldwide shipping in-house through specialist international forwarders experienced with fine art and antiquities customs manifests. International buyers must confirm, prior to bidding, that their country's customs authority will accept the item. All duties, taxes, clearance fees, and any costs arising from customs delays, seizures, re-export, returns, or loss in transit are the buyer's sole responsibility. Artemis assumes no liability for items refused entry, detained, or lost after export. We cannot ship ancient items to their country of origin (Egyptian to Egypt, Greek to Greece, etc.).For those not using LiveAuctioneers' Live Ship program, Artemis Fine Arts offers expert in-house packing and worldwide shipping. With over 20 years of experience, our team provides careful, reliable, and affordable service. For a quick quote on this lot, please contact support@artemisfinearts.com prior to the auction, or call 720-890-7700.
PAYMENT EXCEPTION: For clients not previously established with Artemis, payment for all gold, precious metal, and gemstone lots must be made by bank wire transfer or certified bank check/money order, without exception.
Item #
73401
Condition
Right ear restored, weathered surface.
Buyer's Premium
30%
Southeast Asia, Philippines, Northern Luzon, Ifugao, ca. 1800–1899 CE. A standing male guardian carved from a single block of dense hardwood, rising on an integral corseted base with broad flat feet and splayed toes. The legs are engaged, the torso lean beneath wide shoulders, the arms held straight at the sides with fingers incised across the thighs, the phallus bared. Above, a squared face with lidded eyes, straight nose, and pursed mouth sits under a smooth bowl-shaped cap of striated hair bound by a fillet, flanked by projecting ears. Weathering and long handling have given the wood a dark, unctuous patina. Such figures, known as bulul, are stylized ancestors set to guard the rice crop and granary, their power drawn from the spirit believed to inhabit them. Size: 7" W x 23" H (17.8 cm W x 58.4 cm H).
Bulul (also bul-ul or tinagtaggu) are the best known sculptural form of the Ifugao and their Kalanguya neighbors in the Cordillera highlands of northern Luzon. Carved in pairs, male and female, from narra or other hard woods by a specialist carver working under ritual constraint, they were consecrated with sacrifice, rice wine, and pig blood, then installed in the granary or brought into the fields at planting and harvest to secure and multiply the crop. Repeated libations build the thick, resinous accretion prized on old examples. Ifugao carvers are especially esteemed for the restraint of the type: the swelling calf, the shelf of the shoulders, and the bowl of hair carry the form, while surface ornament is refused almost entirely.
Provenance: Private Hawaii collection; purportedly ex. Loed & Mia van Bussel, Amsterdam.
SHIPPING: We coordinate worldwide shipping in-house through specialist international forwarders experienced with fine art and antiquities customs manifests. International buyers must confirm, prior to bidding, that their country's customs authority will accept the item. All duties, taxes, clearance fees, and any costs arising from customs delays, seizures, re-export, returns, or loss in transit are the buyer's sole responsibility. Artemis assumes no liability for items refused entry, detained, or lost after export. We cannot ship ancient items to their country of origin (Egyptian to Egypt, Greek to Greece, etc.).For those not using LiveAuctioneers' Live Ship program, Artemis Fine Arts offers expert in-house packing and worldwide shipping. With over 20 years of experience, our team provides careful, reliable, and affordable service. For a quick quote on this lot, please contact support@artemisfinearts.com prior to the auction, or call 720-890-7700.
PAYMENT EXCEPTION: For clients not previously established with Artemis, payment for all gold, precious metal, and gemstone lots must be made by bank wire transfer or certified bank check/money order, without exception.
Item #
73401
Condition
Right ear restored, weathered surface.
Buyer's Premium
30%
