Μνημειακή τελετουργική πέτρα Dani - Ye (εναλλακτικά Jé ή Je-aku) - Dani - Ινδονησία (χωρίς τιμή ασφαλείας)

Συνδιαμορφωμένο όχι ως ένα χρηστικό εργαλείο αλλά ως embodiment of ancestral prestige and lineage capital, this monumental ceremonial stone blade - traditionally termed a ye - originates from the Dani people of the Baliem Valley in the Central Highlands of West Papua. Worked from dense metamorphic stone, the piece possesses an elongated, gently curved lenticular form that tapers gracefully toward the butt and terminates in a soft, convex edge. Within highland Dani society, such lithic valuables occupied the paramount echelon of customary wealth, functioning as indispensable instruments of exchange during major rites of passage, including bridewealth transactions, inter-clan peace settlements, and funerary compensations. Sheltered within the inner sanctum of the men’s house between ceremonies, these stones were periodically unwrapped, handled, and anointed with pig fat and natural pigments.

Decades of ritual custody and tactile veneration have endowed the stone with a deep charcoal and umber surface sheen, beneath which subtle mineral inclusions and natural vein fissures remain visible. The perimeter reveals softened wear and minor historic contact chips entirely consistent with ritual circulation and prolonged communal custody. Balancing substantial mass with minimalist purity, the object stands as an evocative testament to Oceanic lithic craftsmanship and traditional highland socio-political economy.


PROVENANCE
Private collection, Germany (field-collected in the Baliem Valley, Irian Jaya, Indonesia, 1993).
Thence by descent to the present owner.