Upper Karawari River Cave Figure-Lynda Cunningham-New Guinea Art-Oceanic Art
Here is an ancient Upper Karawari River Cave Figure, Aripa from the Inyai-Ewa culture of Papua New Guinea. It was collected by Lynda Cunningham in the early 1960s/70s and published in Michael Hamson Oceanic Art, Paris 2018, no. 21.
Lynda Cunningham was one of the first serious female field collectors in New Guinea in the 1960s/70s, having made 18 trips to some of the more remote areas such as the Boiken, Ramu River, and Upper Karawari regions. This cave figure is of the most archaic in nature, with the rough-hewn surface quality from stone adzing combined with a clear, deeply cut expression still powerful after more than a century of exposure under the rim of a limestone cliff edge deep in the rainforest. Aripa were under the control of senior clan members, who would venture out to the caves prior to hunting or warfare to petition the ancestral spirit for its guidance and benevolence in the upcoming endeavor. The present figure is unusual for having a strong coat of red pigments still extant. It is 19th century or earlier and stands 28” (71.1 cm) in height. It is published in my new “Oceanic Art Provenance & History” catalog, no. 8, pages 52-54. The price is available upon request.