Ancestor spirit figure Yapen Island - Korwar - west papua (No reserve price)
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Ancestor spirit Korwar figure from Yapen Island, West Papua, dating to the late 20th century, carved in wood with a compact, inward posture, measures 27 cm high by 10 cm wide by 8 cm deep, in excellent condition and provenance from a private collection.
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Description from the seller
Korwar Figure – Yapen Island, 1980s
This Korwar figure comes from Yapen Island, where the living and the dead were never fully separated, only rearranged. Collected in the field in the 1980s, it belongs to a late moment in a long tradition—one foot still in ritual life, the other already aware of its own disappearance.
Korwar figures were not carved to be admired. They were made to be present. To hold a name. To anchor a spirit. The ancestor does not leave; he condenses. Wood becomes a body small enough to remain near, small enough to speak quietly.
The posture is compact, inward, almost folded. The head dominates, as it should. Thought, memory, lineage—this is where they reside. The surface bears the marks of handling rather than finishing. Touch mattered more than polish.
By the 1980s, Korwar figures were increasingly made with an understanding that they might travel. This one still resists that fate. It does not perform. It waits. Its power lies in restraint, not display.
Seen now, far from Yapen, the figure feels less like a relic and more like a witness. It does not explain itself. It remembers.
Welcome addition to any collection of tribal New Guinea Art/oceanic art
We pack securely sending worldwide
Sold by Koos Knol, ethnographer and anthropologist, dealer of Papua Tribal Art for more than 30 years, expert and author of the book “Papua Blues”, written in Dutch. (Maybe in English next year.) Published end of October 2024
A book about inside stories, a book that deals with the many encounters with special people in West Papua, the impressive experiences that the author has, about special encounters with men and women who tell him about secret things, about ethnographic objects and initiate him into the rituals and ceremonies.
A must have for collectors, ethnographers, ethnologists, anthropologists and museums
Google:Papua Blues Koos Knol
Seller's Story
my wife Paula van den Berg and I, Koos Tuber, both anthropologists, traveling a lot through Papua New Guinea and West Papua (formerly Irian Jaya), Solomon Islands and Vanuatu (formerly New Hebrides). We love local tribal arts, we collected thousands and thousands of artifacts, all authentic, sometimes old, sometimes more recently but mainly used objects in local traditional cultures. We are happy to give more detailed information about the artifacts we sell here on Catawiki. Please feel free to contact us.
Translated by Google TranslateKorwar Figure – Yapen Island, 1980s
This Korwar figure comes from Yapen Island, where the living and the dead were never fully separated, only rearranged. Collected in the field in the 1980s, it belongs to a late moment in a long tradition—one foot still in ritual life, the other already aware of its own disappearance.
Korwar figures were not carved to be admired. They were made to be present. To hold a name. To anchor a spirit. The ancestor does not leave; he condenses. Wood becomes a body small enough to remain near, small enough to speak quietly.
The posture is compact, inward, almost folded. The head dominates, as it should. Thought, memory, lineage—this is where they reside. The surface bears the marks of handling rather than finishing. Touch mattered more than polish.
By the 1980s, Korwar figures were increasingly made with an understanding that they might travel. This one still resists that fate. It does not perform. It waits. Its power lies in restraint, not display.
Seen now, far from Yapen, the figure feels less like a relic and more like a witness. It does not explain itself. It remembers.
Welcome addition to any collection of tribal New Guinea Art/oceanic art
We pack securely sending worldwide
Sold by Koos Knol, ethnographer and anthropologist, dealer of Papua Tribal Art for more than 30 years, expert and author of the book “Papua Blues”, written in Dutch. (Maybe in English next year.) Published end of October 2024
A book about inside stories, a book that deals with the many encounters with special people in West Papua, the impressive experiences that the author has, about special encounters with men and women who tell him about secret things, about ethnographic objects and initiate him into the rituals and ceremonies.
A must have for collectors, ethnographers, ethnologists, anthropologists and museums
Google:Papua Blues Koos Knol
Seller's Story
my wife Paula van den Berg and I, Koos Tuber, both anthropologists, traveling a lot through Papua New Guinea and West Papua (formerly Irian Jaya), Solomon Islands and Vanuatu (formerly New Hebrides). We love local tribal arts, we collected thousands and thousands of artifacts, all authentic, sometimes old, sometimes more recently but mainly used objects in local traditional cultures. We are happy to give more detailed information about the artifacts we sell here on Catawiki. Please feel free to contact us.
Translated by Google TranslateDetails
Indigenous object name
Korwar
No. of items
1
Country of Origin
west papua
Period
Late 20th century
Material
Wood
Sold with stand
No
Condition
Excellent condition
Title of artwork
Ancestor spirit figure Yapen Island
Height
27 cm
Width
10 cm
Depth
8 cm
Provenance
Private collection
