Ceremonial Fence Element in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, July 2018

Title: Ceremonial Fence Element

Artist: Iatmul, Woliagwi artist (?)

Date: late 19th–early 20th century

Geography: Papua New Guinea, Kararau village, Middle Sepik River

Culture: Iatmul, Woliagwi (?)

Medium: Wood, paint

Dimensions: H. 41 5/8 x W. 12 1/4 x D. 4 3/4 in. (105.7 x 31.1 x 12.1cm)

Classification: Wood-Architectural

Credit Line: The Michael C. Rockefeller Memorial Collection, Gift of Nelson A. Rockefeller, 1972

Accession Number: 1978.412.717

Although few examples still stand today, in former times,
Iatmul villages typically had three men’s ceremonial houses
set on the village dancing ground. At either end of each
ceremonial house, the Iatmul constructed a raised earthen
mound, which was planted with totemic trees and plants.
In some rituals, the ceremonial house was likened
metaphorically to a canoe floating on the river, which was
moored by tying it to a tree growing on the mound.
In some instances, the mound was enclosed by a wood
fence, whose components included post-like wood images
depicting brightly painted heads or busts portraying
ancestral spirits. The geometric patterns on the head of
the example seen here resemble the face-paint patterns
worn by the Iatmul on important occasions.

Text from: www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/311163