Ancestor Figure Item Number: C1302 from the MOA: University of British Columbia

Description

Figure representing a full length nude female. Three curves outline the hairline. Large oval head has big pupils in the circular eyes, a triangular nose, and a slightly smiling mouth. The ears have a circular dip in the middle. Small breasts. From the downward angled shoulders, the thin arms are straight at the sides until they are bent at the elbows so that the hands are touching each other at the front. Has genitalia, rounded buttocks, slightly bent knees, and grooved toes on the feet. Has a metal base.

History Of Use

Ancestor figures, or kulap, served as a representation of recently deceased people. A kulap held the spirit of the deceased so that he or she would not wander aimlessly and perhaps cause harm to the living. It was kept in a shrine, where it remained until funerary rites conducted by men were completed. Women were not allowed access to the shrine; they had to stay outside the enclosure to mourn their lost relative. When the funerary rituals were complete and the spirit of the deceased had departed, the kulap were destroyed. During the colonial period, kulap were sold to Westerners. In the words of the donor, the use of kulap figures was as follows: “on the death of any member of a Chief's family one of the men ... goes to the bush tribe that live in the Rossel Mountains and obtains a chalk figure of either a man or a woman, according to the sex of the deceased, with which he returns to his village and with great secrecy gives it to a Chief ... by whom it is then placed in a Toberran House or Mortuary Chapel. If this is not done the spirit of the departed, being without a habitation on this earth, will haunt the survivors of its late family and inflict upon them some evil. Women are never allowed to go near or look upon these figures, it being death for them to do so."

Specific Techniques

Kulap were commissioned from specialist carvers in the Rossel Mountains of New Ireland. According to the donor, Frank Burnett, the chalk the figure is made of is found at the summit of the Rossel Mountains, it is the sole deposit of that material found in the South Pacific.

Item History

What

Name
Ancestor Figure
Identification Number
C1302
Type of Item
figure
Material
chalk stone
Manufacturing Technique
carved
Overall
height 17.6 cm, width 6.5 cm, depth 5.5 cm

Who

Culture
Western Melanesia
Previous Owner
Frank Burnett
Received from
Frank Burnett (Donor)

Where

Holding Institution
MOA: University of British Columbia
Made in
New Ireland, Papua New Guinea

When

Creation Date
between 1900 and 1927
Collection Date
between 1895 and 1927
Ownership Date
before 1927
Acquisition Date
on July 25, 1927

Other

Item Classes
carvings & sculpture
Condition
good
Current Location
Case 66
Accession Number
2191/1249