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Papua New Guinea Wood, shells, feathers, textile, 161 cm high. These flutes were ceremonial instruments in many parts of New Guinea. Sacred flutes were only seen by initiated men and played during important ceremonies. Made from hollow cylinders of bamboo and played, by blowing through a hole in the side of the instrument near the upper end, the tops of these flutes were frequently decorated with ornamental flute stoppers like this example. Some of the finest artworks made in the Sepik River area were the sacred flute stoppers. Flute stoppers portray stylized human images like this example or images of totemic animals. These sacred flutes were used in pairs and were kept hidden in the men's ceremonial house or Haus Tambaran. The sound of the flutes are the voices of specific honoured ancestors and they bear their personal names. Flutes are also associated with crocodile spirits and flutes were used during initiation rites in which novices had cuts made on their backs and chest that healed into permanent scarification that resemble crocodile skin and marking them as initiated individuals. Masks with long beak-like noses appear widely in Lower Sepik art and predominantly depict powerful spirits.

Provenance:
Wayne Heathcote, London;
Francois Coppens, St Niklaas.