Middle Sepik River Pigment Dish-New Guinea Art-Oceanic Art
I recently acquired this ancient Middle Sepik River pigment dish from an artist living in Manhattan who responded to my ad in the New York Times. Her father had acquired it in the 1950s while living in Australia. It is as old as they get. Pre-contact and stone-carved the figure is very archaic and powerful. The age and patina are hard to capture via photograph. There are remains of white pigments in the bowl. Look at the close-up image of the lug on the back of the head. This is the photo that best conveys the antiquity, wear, stone-adzing and beautiful patina. The piece is 19th century, if not older, 7 ¼” (18.2 cm) in height.