Drum Item Number: 3490/1 from the MOA: University of British Columbia

Description

Hourglass-shaped, wooden drum; both ends are round and open. One half of the drum is undecorated. The other half is covered entirely in horizontal bands, with designs carved in low relief. Top band has a plain white line through the centre, trimmed with orange on either side. Second band has an orange zigzag in the middle. The negative space is painted orange and white, creating a triangular motif. Third band is made up of a line of chevrons, alternating in orange and white. The fourth band is the widest, with large repeating diamonds with stylized orange crosses in the centres. All diamond exteriors have orange borders, some have white interior borders and some crosses are trimmed with white. Negative space along top of band is painted white and negative space along bottom is painted orange, creating a triangular motif. Bottom band is identical to second, but thinner. Interior of one opening has vertical beige lines, painted at intervals along the edge.

Narrative

Collected by the donor's father in New Guinea.