New Ireland Hornbill Mouth Ornament-New Guinea Art-Oceanic Tribal Art
New Ireland Hornbill Mouth Ornament
Northern New Ireland, New Ireland Province, Papua New Guinea
American Museum of Natural History. Purchased by them in 1891 from Appleton Sturgis, “but had been on deposit in the museum since approximately 1880” (S-2245).
Bernard Brown, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 1965
Irene Beard Collection, London
Published in Michael Hamson Oceanic Art Paris 2014, no. 24, pages 52/3
Pre-1880
16 ¼” (41.2 cm) in length
What I find noteworthy about this hornbill mouth ornament, besides its incredibly early and fine provenance, is the delicacy of the beak that is hard to appreciate in these images. The underside is hollowed out, and each edge of the beak is extraordinarily thin. New Ireland carvers were some of the very best in Oceania, and this sure-handed competence is clearly evident in the easy precision of the design and execution.
Published in "OCEANIC ART: PROVENANCE AND HISTORY" edited by Michael Hamson, pages 28-35, item 5.