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New Guinea Woven Cowrie Marriage Headdress New Guinea Woven Cowrie Marriage Headdress New Guinea Woven Cowrie Marriage Headdress
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Details

LOT 2140

New Guinea Woven Cowrie Marriage Headdress

19TH-20TH CENTURY A.D.

32 1/2 in. (2 kg total, 82 cm including stand).

A long open ambuusap of closely woven fibre cords with small cowrie shells sewn to the outer surfaces in lines, terminating at the base in a crocodile head; typical of work from the Siakulen Blackwater Lakes region in Sepik Province; with a custom-made display stand. [No Reserve]

Provenance

Acquired 1970s-1990s.
Ex property of an American gentleman.

Literature

Cf. Biebuyck D and Van den Abbeele, N., The Power of Headdresses, Brussels, 1984, p.228, pl.182, for similar and discussion.

Footnotes

These elaborate headdresses were worn by women on ceremonial occasions, such as marriage.

CONDITION
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AUCTIONS:

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LOT 2140

New Guinea Woven Cowrie Marriage Headdress

Sold for (Inc. bp): £364

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